Lagos Unconstitutional LCDAs Received No Allocation from FAAC

.............. As Council Chairmen Storm Tinubu Tesidence for Way Out


Report has it that the thirty seven Local Council Development Authorities, (LCDAs) created in 2003 by the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration in Lagos State, received no allocation from the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee, (FAAC), on the firm instruction of the new Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit, (NFIU).

These authorities were carved out of the twenty constitutionally recognised councils in the state, while Lagos State had fulfilled all the local requirements needed to make them a full fledged council, the National Assembly had refused to list these authorities as councils in Nigeria's Constitution: the concluding requirement for the sixteen year old development authorities.

The Olusegun Obasanjo led administration had witheld Lagos Council funds due to this development, but the Umar Musa Yar Adua administration released the funds to Lagos State during the Babatunde Raji Fashola administration.

The immediate past Governor of Lagos State, who was the State Accountant General in 2003, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode FCA was credited as being the brain financial survival of Lagos Councils in that trying time of their creation.

The practice by Lagos State administration is to share monthly allocation due to the councils, between the recognised councils and their unrecognized downline development authorities.

Uncertainty and apprehensiveness is presently clouding Lagos councils, due to the direct disbursement to only recognised councils and the stringent conditions against council funds disbursements.

Council chairmen are presently meeting with the All Progressives Congress leader in the State Bola Ahmed Tinubu to find a way out of the dilemma.

Tunde Ogunjobi a Lagos based marketing executive said Tinubu and Lagos APC leadership has the blame for the development. He queried why these authorities are yet to be listed into the constitution, four years after Lagos State belongs to the party in power at the federal level.

In his words "Lagos APC left the needful for irrelevancies, in my candid opinion these authorities should run as area offices of the recognised councils, with administrators and not elected officers. As it is they are illegal outfits that should not collect legal funds by law."

Bidemi Thomas a council staff said "I believe Tinubu will obtain concessions from the Buhari led administration, that will make Lagos development authorities to continue to open shop. With the installation of pro executive leadership of the National Assembly, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon Femi Gbajabiamila coming from Lagos State, listing these development authorities in the Constitution should be fiatly accomplished."

This medium learnt Tinubu has dispatched Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to the federal capital territory, to liaise and seek concessions from NFIU, FAAC and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), as well as the Federal Ministry of Finance.

However a Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), chieftain in the state Mr. Morayo Adesanya has called for the scrapping of the thirty seven development authorities, he said they are centres of political and economic terrorism against opposition elements in Lagos State, and an acknowledged patronage desks for Tinubu minions since their creation.

Morayo offered that "eighty per cent of council responsibilities in Lagos State has been usurped by the Lagos State government. So exactly what deliveries are these councils and the appendage development authorities giving to Lagos residents".