Most APC States Now Operate Local Government Autonomy, Says Alheri

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The Chairman of the Progressives Local Government Chairmen Forum (PLGCF), Dr Mustapha Jibril Alheri, on Wednesday said most states governed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) have commenced the implementation of local government autonomy, describing it as a gradual but irreversible process being driven by President Bola Tinubu.

Alheri, who is also the Executive Chairman of Chanchaga Local Government Area of Niger State, spoke during a courtesy visit by members of the forum to the APC National Secretariat in Abuja.

The forum, the umbrella body of 685 elected local government chairmen on the APC platform, said the reforms were already strengthening grassroots governance in many states while positioning councils to play a more active role in national development.

His remarks come more than two years after the Supreme Court, in a landmark judgment delivered on July 11, 2024, granted financial autonomy to the country’s 774 local government councils.

The apex court directed that allocations from the Federation Account should be paid directly to democratically elected councils and ruled that state governments could no longer withhold or control local government funds.

Since the judgment, President Tinubu has consistently urged governors to comply with the ruling, insisting that strengthening the third tier of government is essential to deepening democracy and accelerating grassroots development.

Speaking on the implementation of the judgment, Alheri said many APC-controlled states had embraced the policy.

“Regarding the issue of the autonomy of the local government, the President has been pursuing this for a very long time, and most of the states under the Progressive Local Government leadership are enjoying full autonomy,” he said.

He acknowledged that implementation remained a gradual process in some states but expressed confidence that full autonomy would soon become a reality nationwide.

“This is a transition process. The APC, through the leadership of the President, has taken it upon itself to ensure that we get complete autonomy. We are transitioning slowly but surely towards full autonomy,” he added.

Alheri commended Tinubu for what he described as his commitment to strengthening local government administration, saying empowered councils would accelerate development and improve service delivery at the grassroots.

He said the forum was established to mobilise support for the President’s policies and programmes while promoting the ideals of the ruling party across the country.

“We have 685 local government chairmen under the leadership of our great party. We have also been able to attract many more people into the APC,” he said.

The forum chairman also expressed confidence that elected council chairmen would play a decisive role in the 2027 general election because of their closeness to the electorate.

According to him, the forum is targeting more than 70 per cent of the votes in the next general election through sustained mobilisation across communities.

Receiving the delegation, APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, pledged a stronger partnership with the council chairmen to consolidate the party’s grassroots structure ahead of the 2027 polls.

“I would like to work in partnership with you. Together, we will build a strong alliance that will deliver victory for our party in 2027,” Yilwatda said.

He assured the forum that the APC would support every lawful initiative capable of strengthening the party and improving its electoral fortunes.

“Anything that will make our party succeed, provided it is legal, we will do it. The party will stand by you and work with you side by side to ensure that you succeed,” he said.

Yilwatda also urged the chairmen to serve as ambassadors of the Tinubu administration by taking government policies and programmes to the grassroots while addressing the developmental needs of their communities.

He reminded them that, as the tier of government closest to the people, local councils have a critical responsibility in tackling multidimensional poverty.

“If there is multidimensional poverty under this administration, you also have a responsibility because you are the closest government to the people,” he said.

Also speaking, the forum’s Deputy National Chairman (South), Rawlings Dagidi, said local government councils were now better positioned to provide infrastructure and expand the APC’s support base because of reforms introduced under the Tinubu administration.