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Uzodinma And LG Autonomy In Imo State
TRACKING___Nigeria has 774 local government areas. Each local government area is
administered by a Local Government Council consisting of a chairman
who is the Chief Executive of the LGA, and other elected members who
are referred to as Councillors.
Local authorities are multi-purpose bodies responsible for delivering
a broad range of services in relation to roads; traffic; planning; housing; economic and community development; environment, recreation
and amenity services; fire services and maintaining the register of electors.
Local government is the closest tier of government to the people of Nigeria, yet the resident population in it is denied the benefits of its existence. The failure of local government in the area of service delivery over the years has made the citizens to loose faith and trust
in local government administration as an institution in Nigeria.
However, local government’s inability to perform its constitutional
functions effectively has been blamed on lack of autonomy to operate
as a third tier of government.
The issue of local government autonomy in Nigeria has become a
recurrent decimal in the political chessboard of our national
discourse. The 1976 local government reform by the then military Head
of State General Olusegun Obasanjo administration was in order to
positively affect the lives of all the citizens in the country.
democracy, the grassroots must be democratized at the grassroots
before handing over the country to civilian administration as the
engine house of any democratic government.The 1976 Local Government Reforms, was meant to make the councils to
be the third tier of government and not an appendage of either of the
two tiers of government or subjected to the whims and caprices of any
other government; just the same way that the state government is
autonomous from the federal government. Local government is meant to be autonomous from the state government. Successive administrations in the country have not given the local government the opportunity to
operate independently as enshrined in the constitution.
Interestingly, all the gubernatorial aspirants that emerged as
candidates in their various parties like Senator Hope Uzodinma, former
Governor Ikedi Ohakim, Hon Emeka Ihedioha, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume ,
Ugwumba Uche Nwosu and even my good friend Linus Okorie all promised
to ensure and accord full scale autonomy to local government councils if elected.
At the end of the governorship election, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha was
declared winner against the popular candidature, Senator Hope
Uzodinma. After his inauguration as the governor he sacked the
chairmen and councillors elected on the platform of All Progressives
Congress (APC) by Rochas Okorocha’s administration towards the tail
end of his administration and appointed Interim Management Committee
at the various local government areas of the state, a development that
was seen as a negation of local government autonomy as enshrined in
the 1999 constitution (as amended).
Determined to reclaim the mandate given to him by the people, Senator
Uzodinma went to court to seek redress. At the end of the litigations,
the Supreme Court in its wisdom declared Senator Uzodinma as the duly
elected governor and was subsequently sworn in as the governor of Imo
State.
In fairness to Senator Hope Uzodinma as a democrat, he had wanted to
conduct outrightly council poll without opting for Interim Management
Committee but due to pressure from the Imo State House of Assembly and
the outbreak of Coronavirus in the world the governor had to appoint
Interim Management Committee at the local government level to help in
the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic issues. From all indications
since he assumed office as the governor of Imo State, he has shown
determination and readiness to conduct election into the local government areas of the state.
At any given opportunity, Senator Hope Uzodinma reiterates his
administration’s resolve to ensure that the grassroots feel the impact
of his administration. After swearing in the Interim Management
Committee (IMC) for the 27 LGAs, following directive from the Imo
State House of Assembly, Governor Uzodinma told them to go and serve
the people and help to bring his message of prosperity government
encapsulated in his 3R mantra of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and
Recovery to reality.
“Go and recover the LGAs which are like a cemetery. You must serve the
people and not yourself. In a very short time we will be organising a
proper local council election. If you do well you can stand in for the
election or you will be disqualified if the contrary is the case.
Avoid things that will bring government to ridicule. Go and justify
the trust we have today reposed on you and remember that government
business is a serious business,” the governor admonished.
During a recent courtesy visit by the 27 IMC chairmen at the Sam
Mbakwe Executive Chambers Government House Owerri, Governor Hope Uzodinma once more charged the interim management chairmen of the 27
local government areas in the state to always have the poor and vulnerable in mind whenever they want to design policies.
The governor also told the council chairmen to ensure that they do not
do good governance without playing politics as they are his
representatives at the grassroots. He reiterated his pledge to work in
the interest of the weak in the society, admonishing the council
bosses to always think the same way. He promised to support them in
all their endeavours in office and reminded them not to be distracted
by the things they see around them in the course of governance.
One of the IMC chairmen who seem to have comfortably keyed into the
essence of Governor Uzodinma’s admonition for them to go and make a
difference at the grassroots is the chairman of Ngor Okpala LGA, Chief
Mayor Obinna Nweke whose coronavirus awareness campaign has been adjudged one of the best in the state. His strategy for curtailing
movements across the council’s five land borders to stop the spread of
COVID-19 into the council, including the border with Rivers State has
earned him commendations. He has also demonstrated determination to
industrialise the council, revealing recently his plans to bring in
foreign investors to build Airport Industrial Park in order to create
jobs, produce goods that are sold to other states and export to other
countries taking advantage of Sam Mbakwe Airport, Owerri. He blamed
COVID-19 for the delay in taking off of the Industrial Park project.
Nweke is one of the IMC chairmen that gives hope that something
positive has begun to happen at the grassroots. It is another reason
why democratization of the councils through elections has become
inevitable. And all eyes are on Governor Uzodinma.
Determined to enthrone local government administration at the
grassroots level Governor Uzodinma recently inaugurated the Imo
State Independent Electoral Commission (ISIEC), with a charge that
members should use their position to strengthen democracy at the
grassroots. Performing the inauguration of the new board of ISIEC at
the Sam Mbakwe Executive Chambers, Government House, Owerri, Governor
Uzodimma said the new ISIEC is expected to “produce chairmen and
councillors with political integrity, strong in character irrespective
of political party, local government area or council.”
He directed the body led by Mrs. Pauline Onyeka as chairman to go and
strengthen the state electoral infrastructure that will conduct and
produce credible elections in Imo State both now and in the future.
Gauging the mood of the people, this writer has also discovered that
the generality of Imolites are confident and optimistic that Governor
Uzodinma would re-engineer grassroots development in the state and
would also ensure free and fair local government elections that will
enthrone and usher in full autonomy at the local government level. The
governor and ISIEC need all the support that they could get to ensure
free and fair electoral process at the grassroots. Governor Uzodinma
has come to make a change and take Imo to the next level of
development. He needs our support and prayers to succeed.
Nnanna Okere is the Coordinator, Imo Diasporas Support for Governor
Hope Uzodinma