The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), has issued a stern warning to state governors bypassing the Supreme Court judgment on local government autonomy, threatening to seek a contempt of court suit if the defiance continues.
Fagbemi stated this in Abuja, on Thursday, at the 2024 annual conference of the National Association of Judiciary Correspondents.
The Supreme Court, on July 11, 2024, delivered a landmark judgment affirming the financial autonomy of the 774 local government areas in the country and stopping governors from further control of funds meant for the councils.
The apex court also directed the Accountant-General of the Federation to pay local government allocations directly to their accounts, as it declared the non-remittance of funds by the 36 states unconstitutional.
In a suit marked SC/CV/343/2024, aimed at strengthening local government autonomy as guaranteed by the constitution, Fagbemi also obtained a court order preventing governors from unilaterally dissolving democratically elected local government councils and establishing caretaker committees.
In the unanimous judgment of its seven-member panel, the Supreme Court upheld the suit brought by the Federal Government to strengthen the independence of local governments in the country.