Nigerian Senator Threatens To Resign Seat If …

In unprecedented support for local government autonomy, Senator Tony Nwoye has pledged to resign from the Senate if the local governments in his native Anambra State should the state government fully implement the Supreme Court directive on financial autonomy at the local government level

Senator Tony Nwoye, Labour, Anambra North has vowed to resign his Senate seat if local government chairmen in Anambra State ever run short of money under full financial autonomy as prescribed by the Supreme Court judgment of last May.

Speaking in an interview, Senator Nwoye accused Governor Chukwuma Soludo of attempting to undercut the Supreme Court judgment abolishing the Joint State/Local Government Account by creating a reverse law to uphold revenue sharing between the two tiers.

Dr Nwoye, a former student activist, dismissed claims by the Anambra State Government that local governments would sooner than later run back to the state for bailout if given full financial autonomy.

Remarkably, Senator Nwoye who belongs to Labour Party said he did not mind that the newly elected local government chairmen belong to APGA. According to him despite the fact that Labour Party boycotted the election he said that Governor Soludo who belongs to APGA did not trust the new mayors as the local government chairmen are called all of who were elected on the APGA platform.

Dr Nwoye spoke in an interview on Arise News.

He said:

“I can bet you with my dignity and integrity, if they allow the local governments in Anambra to access their money, I can bet you that if any of them comes back to say that we don’t have money and ask for bail us out, I will resign my membership of the Senate.”

Countering the argument by the Anambra Government that the local governments would sooner than later ask for bailout, Senator Nwoye said:

“That argument is just a subterfuge, a ruse for them to keep on siphoning, diverting and fleecing the money meant for the local government.

“Awka South that receives close to N350 to N400 million from the Federation Account, I can bet you that their salary bill is not up to N250m. I don’t want to talk about IGR which is…”

“That argument by my big brother and friend, Law Meefor is just what they told him to say, it is a ruse,” Senator Nwoye said in dismissing the claims of the new commissioner for information, Dr Law Meefor.

“If any local government chairman should come out to say bail us out, I will resign my membership of the Senate, they are just using it as an excuse to violate the ruling of the Supreme Court.”

Senator Nwoye mocked the Soludo government for not trusting his fellow APGA members who he claimed were foisted as chairmen of the local governments to manage the funds.

“With his conscience they know that they did not conduct  a credible local government election and that is why Labour Party, APC pulled out because we knew ab initio that they wanted to return all the caretaker chairmen and councilors and that what they did 100%.

“What we are saying is that he has conducted “election” ANSIEC has produced members of his party 100%, but let him allow them to access their money because local governments money as expressed by the Supreme Court has no joint ownership irrespective of any name you create.

“He has appointed his own people but then he still doesn’t have confidence that they can manage their money. It is not his money. Supreme Court has said that there is no joint ownership.

“What we are saying is that winners have emerged but them be allowed to run their accounts,” Senator Nwoye said as he again vowed to resign if the local governments resort to begging in the event of full autonomy.

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