The 33 council chairmen in Oyo State have dumped the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) over the Supreme Court’s judgment granting financial autonomy to local government across the country.
The chairmen, in a communiqué by the chairmen, unanimously declared their support for Governor Seyi Makinde.
ALGON’s Public Relation Officer in the state, Ibrahim Akintayo, described the chairmen’s stand as solidarity to Governor Makinde’s recent stand on local government autonomy as ruled by the apex court.
They attributed their loyalty to Makinde for his exemplary leadership and unrivalled achievements since his assumption to office.
Oyo State governor had during a meeting with some stakeholders after the court ruling constituted committees to review apex court’s ruling on local government autonomy.
“I called this meeting because I felt that even though we have not seen the Certified True Copy of the judgment of the Supreme Court, we have to be proactive and discuss the decision of the Supreme Court as it concerns financial autonomy of the local government councils because I believe a lacuna has been created between the decision and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that we all swore to uphold.
“The law is the law, and when there is a conflict, yes, we should go to the court. But it behoves on us to look for our own home-grown solutions that can ensure we have transparency and that our people do not suffer. This is because when two elephants are fighting, it is the grass that will suffer,” the governor had stated.