Jonathan Nwokpor
Tomorrow, Thursday, July 11, the Supreme Court will render a decision in the Federal Government’s lawsuit against the 36 state governors who want to grant all 774 local municipalities in the nation complete autonomy.
According to a document ZINGTIE saw on Wednesday at the supreme court, each party to the lawsuit has received notification from their respective attorney.
Our correspondent noted that the Federal Ministry of Justice in Abuja’s office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice issued the federal government with notice of the judgement delivery.
ZINGTIE remembers that on Thursday, June 13, Justice Garba Mohammed Lawal said that the parties involved in the case would be notified as soon as the judgment is ready.
Justice Lawal, who chaired a 7-man panel of Justices of the supreme court, announced the reservation of the verdict after the federal government and the governors presented their arguments for adjudication.
The federal government’s case was made by Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, while the 36 state governors used their own solicitors to make their own arguments.
As Nigeria’s third tier of government and in accordance with the country’s constitution, the AGF had implored the Supreme Court to grant all the reliefs requested by the Federal Government in the lawsuit and to fully grant local governments autonomy.
He had maintained that the autonomy should entail the direct distribution of cash to local governments from the federation account, as opposed to the current situation in which the governor has supervisory authority over the councils’ finances.
Additionally, the AGF had petitioned for a state governor’s decree banning the unjust dissolution of local government officials.
Nevertheless, the governors requested that the lawsuit be dismissed from the court by means of their respective Attorneys General, who disagreed with the federal government’s request.
Please don’t forget to “Allow the notification” so you will be the first to get our gist when we publish it.
Drop your comment in the section below, and don’t forget to share the post.
