By Yusuf I. Goje
Just of recent, the Supreme Court of Nigeria in a well celebrated ruling annulled the powers of State Governors to dissolve elected local government councils before their tenure ends. This is in compliance with Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees the system of local government by democratically elected local government councils which validates the elections of the officials and allows the will of the people to prevail. This speaks to the fact that according to the Courts, not my opinion, all Caretaker Committees presently at the helm of affairs in the 23 local government of Kaduna state and Lere local government in particular remain unrecognized by the constitution.
Also of recent, the National Assembly patriotically commenced the process of granting full autonomy to local governments by restricting federal allocations to only democratically elected councils. This will surely reduce the powers of the state governments in manipulating the local governments by appointing their representatives rather than those with the people’s mandate from occupying the various elective positions. Predictably, if this scales through and the President assents to it, development at the grassroots will be enhanced to reflect the true needs and wants of the people.
Lere is one of the local governments in Kaduna State that has suffered its own share of having constitutionally unrecognized Caretaker Committees. From 1999 till date, we had three elected and seven unelected officials at the helm of affairs, they are: Alhaji Aliyu Saleh Raminkura – elected; Alhaji Abbas Sigau – caretaker; Dr. Dogara Mato Dary – caretaker; Alhaji Ibrahim Lawal Nuhu Kayarda – elected; Mr. Musa Kudaru – caretaker; Alhaji Umaru Yunusa – caretaker; Alhaji Ibrahim Tahir Malali – caretaker; Alhaji Ibrahim Lazuru – served as both elected and caretaker; and the incumbent Alhaji Tanimu Ahmed Saminaka – caretaker.
Due to the lack of autonomy and the absence of the people’s mandate behind the caretaker committees, the local government has not enjoyed accelerated development. This has impeded the smooth running of democratic governance with the decision-making processes restricted to the wish and desire of the governor. Selection of the membership of the committees is strictly at the discretion of the governor in consultation with his political loyalists and supporters at the local government.
This robs the citizens the constitutionally guaranteed right to vote for candidates of their choice and to be voted for. On the other hand, members of the caretaker committee perpetually live in fear of the insecurity of their tenure in office and release of allocations; therefore they cannot operate governance outside the will of the governor.
Indeed, Lere Local Government is richly blessed but yet underdeveloped due to the above mentioned challenges. It is one of the most populated local governments in the state with a population of 339, 740 according to the 2006 census; while the population projection for 2011 was put at 394, 720. It covers an area of 2,158km – density of 182.91inh./km.
A largely agrarian community blessed with arable lands, no wonder it remains the largest corn market in West Africa. Other crops that can be found are soya beans, sugarcane, beans, rice among many others. The local government is occupied by ethnic nationalities such as Kurama, Hausa-Fulani, Gure, Kahugu just to mention but a few.
Going forward, the pressure is mounting higher on the present administration through the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIECOM) to organize local government elections as soon as possible; this is coming after a court judgment in that direction. As the present administration’s mantra is that of “CHANGE”; it is expected that upholding the sanctity of the constitution will be its guiding principle. The body language of the administration and the electoral umpire shows that elections will soon be held, that is in the absence of any unforeseen circumstances. Another State that has taken the bull by the horns and we should emulate is Yobe State which is still recovering from the insurgency crisis and is planning to hold Local Government elections soon.
The big question is if and when this administration decides to hold the local government elections, what kind of credible leadership will the people of Lere elect to fast-track inclusive growth and development. Without mincing words, Lere local government has the potential of being a self-sufficient council; but has over the years suffered due to less than impressive performance in office of some of its former council chairmen.
This potential can only be brought into reality if the opportunity of the forthcoming elections is seized by the people to put in place a youth at heart, visionary, charismatic, honest, open-minded, competent and compassionate leadership.
A key challenge the incoming elected leadership will confront is that of mutual suspicion among the ethnic nationalities and uneven spread of opportunities and development. He or she will need to be open-minded and a bridge builder; who should have the right temperament to be fair and just to all regardless of political, ethnic and religious affiliation.
A lot of ingenuity needs to be employed to cover the infrastructure deficit present in the local government; this can be achieved through effective lobbying skills that can attract Federal and State projects. On his or her part, there needs to be strategic and innovative thinking to expand and diversify the revenue mobilization base of the local government to enhance infrastructure development.
With a proactive and dynamic leadership that is ready to carry out proper reforms and restructuring, Lere local government can attract private sector investment, development partners, donor agencies and NGOs to engage in empowerment, service delivery and infrastructural development. The revenue being generated weekly in millions from the various market days can be further expanded through supporting and strengthening the micro, small, medium enterprises (MSMEs). This is one sector the incoming leadership needs to give maximum attention. It has been the backbone of any progressive economy by creating jobs, reducing poverty and generating more revenue for the government.
Goje writes from Lagos.