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Supreme Court orders LGA chairmen can enjoy 4-year tenure like executives

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…also state assemblies can extend tenure of LG chairmen

The apex court in Nigeria, Supreme Court has ordered that the four-year tenure enjoyed by Executives be extended to the office of all Local Government Chairmen across the country.

This is contained in the Certified-True-Copy (CTC) of a judgment delivered by Justice Mohammed Garba and six others on May 11, 2024.

Garba said that some states have, by their various illegal actions, starved the local government councils in their states to the extent that most of them cannot exercise their constitutional powers or perform their statutory functions.

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The Justice described situation of LGA in the country as “one tier of government’s inhumanity to another tier of government.”

Garba said that LGA in Nigeria, unlike branches of incorporated bodies or entities, are constitutionally the third tier of government of the Federation.

According to him, their political and financial independence are duly guaranteed by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended.

The Justice said that Section 2(2) of the Constitution provides that “Nigeria shall be a Federation consisting of States and a Federal Capital Territory”.

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He further stated that 36 sates in the country are specified, in an alphabetical order, by section 3(1) of the Constitution.

He said that section 3(6) of the Constitution, provides that “there shall be 768 local government areas in Nigeria “ while Section 1(2) of the Constitution provided that “Nigeria shall not be governed, nor shall any person or group of persons take control of the Government of Nigeria or any part thereof, except in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution”.

The Justice, however, said that in respect of six Area Councils of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, there is a template legislation by the National Assembly.

He said that by way of sections 108, 109, 110 and 113 of the Electoral Act, (2022) the dissolution (tenure of Area Councils), vacation of seat of members, removal of Chairman/Vice Chairman, recall; etc was addressed.

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And elections into the area councils are promptly conducted or held by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

“It is, therefore, unfortunate that some states do not even bother about conducting elections into local government councils as required by the relevant laws of their Houses of Assembly.

“Under section 135 (3) of the Constitution, the tenure of four years for the president, provided for by section 135(2) thereof, shall be extended, for periods not exceeding a period of six months at any time by a resolution of the National Assembly, if it is not practicable to hold elections.

“By the same token, by a law of a State House of Assembly the tenure of local government councils can be legally extended, for any reason, such as insecurity or war, if it becomes impracticable or impossible for elections into the local government councils to be conducted.

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“The mandate given to an elected local government council is the mandate of the electorate of that local government area and if the tenure is extended, it is the people’s mandate that is extended.

“If the tenure of a local government council is truncated, as it is the norm now, it is an illegal termination of the electorate’s mandate and it is not to be encouraged but roundly condemned.

“By the doctrine of separation of powers, it is the constitutional duty or function of the Legislature to make laws, which includes amendments and repeals; and the duty of the judiciary is to interpret the laws to achieve the
intendment of the legislation,” he said.

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Just in: 24 people feared dead, others injured as bomb explodes in train station

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No fewer than 24 people were killed and more than 40 injured in a bomb blast at a railway station in Quetta in southwestern Pakistan on Saturday, police and other officials told Reuters.

Pakistan is grappling with a surge in strikes by separatist ethnic militants in the south and Islamist militants in its northwest.

Inspector general of police for Balochistan, Mouzzam Jah Ansari, said 24 people have died from the blast so far.

The target was army personnel from the Infantry School,” he said, with many of the injured in critical condition.

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“So far 44 injured people have been brought to civil hospital,” Dr. Wasim Baig, a hospital spokesman, told Reuters.

Senior superintendent of police operations, Muhammad Baloch, said the blast seemed to be a suicide bomb and that investigations were underway for more information.

“The blast took place inside the railway station when the Peshawar-bound express was about to leave for its destination,” Baloch said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the blast at Quetta’s main railway station, which is usually busy early in the day.

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In August, at least 73 people were killed in Balochistan province after separatist militants attacked police stations, railway lines and highways.

The assaults in August were the most widespread in years by militants fighting a decades-long insurgency to win secession of the resource-rich southwestern province, home to major China-led projects such as a port and a gold and copper mine.

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EFCC Nabs Chinese Brothers, 2 Others for Alleged Illegal Dealing in Solid Minerals

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Operatives of the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, have arrested two Chinese siblings: Wang Jiang and Wang Richard for allegedly making efforts to export some solid minerals without requisite permit.

While Jiang was arrested at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport ,Enugu, the rest, including two Nigerians, Donatus Agupusi and Michael Benneth Agu, were arrested at the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the EFCC.

Their arrest followed an intelligence received by the Commission through the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria, FAAN on November 3, 2024 involving Jiang who was intercepted at the hold baggage screening point, where unidentified suspicious stones believed to be solid minerals wrapped in three different pieces were discovered in his luggage.

Preliminary investigations into the matter revealed that Agupusi, owner of Great Wall Construction Limited, is the employer of the remaining suspects. Investigation also revealed that Jiang was attempting to travel out of the country with the solid minerals in order to carry out some tests on them in China.

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Investigations further revealed that none of the four suspects had a permit to export the solid minerals to China.

The suspects will be charged to court as soon as investigations are concluded.

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Amid economic frustrations FG burns N5bn on Lagos VP’s residence

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Despite ravaging hunger and ongoing economic challenges and escalating inflation affecting millions of Nigerians, the Federal Government has come under scrutiny for allocating a significant N5 billion towards the renovation of the Vice President’s official residence in Lagos.

In November 2023, the Federal Government outlined a supplementary budget of N2.17 trillion, which included N3 billion specifically allocated for refurbishing the Vice President’s Lagos residence and an additional N2.5 billion for his official quarters at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja. These expenditures were part of an effort to upgrade government infrastructure, yet they have sparked widespread concern among citizens facing economic hardships.

According to findings from GovSpend, a civic technology platform that monitors federal expenditures, the actual amount spent on the Vice President’s Lagos residence renovations in 2024 totaled N5,034,077,063.

This sum, spent between May and September, exceeded the initial budgetary estimates, raising questions about the use of public funds amid broader financial constraints.

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A closer look at the spending details shows that on May 31, 2024, the State House disbursed N2,827,119,051 to Denderi Investment Limited, an engineering firm, to undertake renovations on the Vice President’s Lagos residence.

Later, on September 5, 2024, additional payments were made for further work on the property, including N726,748,686 from the Office of the Chief of Staff for additional renovations, and N1,480,209,326 for a second phase of the project.

The substantial scale of these allocations has drawn attention from both the public and civil society organizations advocating for fiscal responsibility.

In addition to the Lagos renovation costs, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) announced in November 2023 a plan to construct a new residence for the Vice President in Abuja, at an estimated cost of N15 billion. FCT Minister Nyesom Wike presented this plan during a House of Representatives committee session to justify the FCTA’s supplementary budget of N61.5 billion.

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The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), a prominent civil rights organization, criticized these expenditures, labeling them as misaligned with the nation’s current financial challenges and a violation of constitutional principles. SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, highlighted the strain that debt servicing places on the country’s budget, with an estimated 30 percent (N8.25 trillion) of the 2024 budget of N27.5 trillion earmarked for debt payments. Oluwadare argued that allocating billions for a new vice-presidential residence in such times represents a breach of public trust.

Other advocates have voiced similar concerns. Auwal Rafsanjani, Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, questioned the sincerity of the government’s commitment to reducing governance costs, pointing out that budget allocations for executive expenses have seen minimal cuts in the past 16 months. Likewise, Debo Adeniran, Chairman of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, emphasized the need for a constitutional framework to control government spending, suggesting that a new, more restrictive constitution could help curb excessive financial allocations in the future.

These calls for restraint underscore the pressing need for policy decisions that prioritize public welfare, particularly as citizens face economic pressures on a daily basis.

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