LG AUTONOMY — An Iseyin born politician and chieftain of Oyo APC, Hon. Kunle Teslim, popularly known as TESCOM has carpeted the Chairman, Conference of Nigeria Speakers and who is also the Speaker of Oyo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Debo Ogundoyin over his unguarded statement about local government autonomy in the country.
Hon. Kunle TESCOM while reacting to the position of Ogundoyin on the autonomy of local government administration expressed his greatest concern on the future of Nigeria in the hands of inexperienced political office holders and those who lack the will to develop the government at grassroots level.
According to him, “It is disappointing and highly disheartening to see a young Nigerian, in that position as Chairman of Conference of Nigeria Speakers opposing grassroot development through his open rejection of local government autonomy.”
“It is highly inconsequential on his part, and for those in the knowledge of Oyo State politics, it would be known that he is an accidental and unprepared parliamentarian who rose to power through the vacuum left by the late Rt. Hon. Micheal Adeyemo of the blessed memory. And the reason why his comment should not have surprised us.”
“At that, I’m still finding it difficult to understand the fears and worries of Ogundoyin, Oyo Assembly Speaker, and maybe his other colleagues in downplaying the call for genuine LG Autonomy at this stage of Nigeria’s development after reading through the news content of his ugly presentation.
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“It is not legally and politically appropriate for him to have said “granting local governments their autonomy will engender massive corruption at the local level.”
“We need to ask for his tools of assessment for him to have raised non-available dust in the local government system of Nigeria. Alleging potential local governments chairmen and councilors of corruption is uncalled for.” Kunle Tescom added.
“It is even sad that he is unconscious of his comment in deriding the capacities and capabilities of the country’s anti-graft agencies; EFCC, ICPC, and others in handling corruption and related offenses in the country.
“As speaker of Speakers in the country, he is expected to be motivating and encouraging the efforts these agencies are putting on the line to make our society corrupt free, and advocates for more resources, both human and materials. Instead, he’s the one leading campaign about their shortcomings. Maybe he has visited them as a guest or for interrogation at one time or the other to have known they do not have enough manpower to operate.”
“For Ogundoyin to have further said that FG will usurped the roles of the state governments to local governments further confirmed how inexperienced he is when it comes to legislative and constitutional businesses. And maybe the national role is tactically exposing his weakness and inefficiency in the capacity of lawmaking, because he should be advocating for a law that will be adopted nationally to cater for the oversight he has identified, and not that the struggle for LG Autonomy should be buried because of his identifiable lose part of the LG autonomy.”
“Nigeria is a country of law. And at that, we should be striving to build a strong institution that will be beneficial to Nigeria and Nigerians and not to be pessimistic and nursing weak institutions because of personal reasons or agenda of continuing enslavement of local government and obviously killing the grassroots development we all grew to see and know but gradually disappearing because of the dependency of local government in the hand of state governors.”
“While I am commending the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) on the recent case instituted against the 36 state governors on the LG autonomy issue, I am equally calling on National Assembly to constitutionally correct the loopholes through which the governors are using to put local government in their pockets. Most especially the area of operating a State Joint Local Government Account, and the amendment of procedure of operations of state independent electoral commission as contained in the constitution.”
“With that, the three levels of government will be working perfectly and independently with no one being at the detriment or mercy of others, and for accelerated development at grassroots level. LG Autonomy must come to reality” He concluded.
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