Lawyer and human rights activist Tope Temokun has denounced non-elected bodies overseeing local government affairs in Nigeria, asserting their illegality under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
In a statement released on Thursday, July 11, 2024, Temokun criticized these entities, regardless of their designation, as mere caretaker committees. He noted that public opinion and judicial rulings across various states have widely condemned and invalidated these bodies.
The statement, titled “Aiyedatiwa’s Local Government Transition Committee is Illegal and it is Replacing Illegality with another Illegality,” referenced Section 7(1) of the constitution. This section guarantees democratically elected councils and mandates state governments to ensure their establishment under specific laws.
Furthermore, Section 1(2) was cited to emphasize that governance outside the constitutional framework is prohibited. “These laws are clear and accessible to all,” stated the legal authorities. “They emphasize the basic principle of democratic governance through elected local councils.”
Temokun rebuked outdated and unconstitutional governance tactics. He asserted, “Any other body, committee, or whatever name so-called, constituted to oversee the affairs of the local governments, other than a democratically elected body, is a nullity to the extent of its conflict with the clear provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). Any such body is a caretaker committee in disguise, condemned and rejected by the people and the courts across state boundaries.”
He highlighted that the constitution recognizes and guarantees a system of local government by democratically elected councils. Any state governor failing to conduct local council elections is breaching the constitution.
“Governor Aiyedatiwa owes the people many explanations on this new path of deliberate illegality he has chosen to follow,” Temokun continued. “He should address why he is building the foundation of Ondo State government on a notorious illegality. He should disclose whether he demanded explanations from the State Independent Electoral Commissions, ODIEC, about the postponement of local council elections and the responses he received. He should clarify if ODIEC’s postponement is not a charade, a scam, and an arrangement to justify this aberration.”
Temokun posed more questions: “What is the duty and timeline of this transition committee? It is disheartening that people accept all sorts of appointments from the government without scrutiny. The short-lived jubilation of those appointed to the ill-motivated, ill-structured, and ill-fated LCDAs created by the governor’s predecessor should serve as a lesson. No one should allow the government to turn them into an object of ridicule before the people.”
He added, “If you are not paid any remuneration, entitlement, or allowance, you cannot even seek legal redress. In the eyes of the law, you do not exist. The same government that appoints you will be the same government to invoke that jurisprudence against you to shatter your hope of redress.”
Lovely