SUPREME COURT ORDERS FOUR-YEAR TENURE FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT COUNCIL CHAIRMEN AND COUNCILLORS.

By Desmond Ugbo

In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court of Nigeria has granted full autonomy to local government councils, ordering that the four-year tenure enjoyed by other elected executives be extended to the offices of all local government chairmen and Ward councillors across the country.

The judgment, delivered on May 11, 2024, by a seven-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba, stated that the current situation where some state governments have starved local government councils of funds and denied them the ability to exercise their constitutional powers is unacceptable.

“The situation of the local government areas in the country is one tier of government’s inhumanity to another tier of government,” Justice Garba declared in the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment obtained by our reporter.

The court ruled that local government areas, being the third tier of government in Nigeria, are constitutionally guaranteed political and financial independence, which must be respected by state governments.

Justice Garba noted that Section 3(6) of the Constitution provides for 774 local government areas in Nigeria, and that state governments have a duty to ensure regular elections are conducted into these councils.

“It is, therefore, unfortunate that some states do not even bother about conducting elections into local government councils as required by the relevant laws of their Houses of Assembly,” the judge lamented.

The Supreme Court further held that the tenure of local government councils can only be legally extended by the state Houses of Assembly, in situations where it becomes impracticable or impossible to conduct elections, such as in times of insecurity or war.

“The mandate given to an elected local government council is the mandate of the electorate of that local government area, and if the tenure is extended, it is the people’s mandate that is extended,” Justice Garba explained.

This landmark judgment is expected to redefine the relationship between state governments and local government councils in Nigeria, ensuring that the latter can effectively discharge their constitutional responsibilities without undue interference.