The pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has criticized the Supreme Court’s decision granting complete financial autonomy to local governments in Nigeria.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that it is unconstitutional for state governors to withhold funds allocated to local government administrations. Additionally, the court declared that state governments lack the authority to appoint caretaker committees for local government councils, which must be led by democratically elected officials.
In a statement issued on Saturday by its leader Chief Ayo Adebanjo and National Public Secretary Prince Justice Faloye, Afenifere labeled the court’s decision as a judicial conspiracy. The statement, titled “Tinubu and the Grand Conspiracy Against Democracy and True Federalism in Nigeria,” argued that the judgment undermines the principles of true federalism and accused the Supreme Court of pandering to public sentiment.
Afenifere expressed that the judgment contradicts the foundational principles of federalism by recognizing a three-tier government structure—federal, state, and local—rather than the constitutionally defined two-tier system of central and state governments. The group emphasized that Nigeria’s existence as a federation is based on the recognition of only states and a Federal Capital Territory, as per Section 2(2) of the 1999 Constitution.
The group condemned any actions that undermine the constitutional roles of states, including the manipulation of the federation account. They accused the Tinubu administration of pursuing unitary policies, citing the creation of the Ministry of Livestock Development as a veiled attempt to reintroduce controversial land policies like cattle colonies and RUGA.
Afenifere insisted that true federalism is the only viable path forward for Nigeria. They called for a comprehensive restructuring of the polity to reinforce the fundamental principles of federalism agreed upon by the nation’s founding fathers. This restructuring includes affirming that the local government system should be under state jurisdiction, either through direct constitutional provisions or residual powers.
The statement concluded that the Tinubu administration, in its first year, has shown an alarming tendency towards centralizing power, surpassing even military regimes in its efforts to undermine the federal structure of the nation.