Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has mandated all the 33 Local Government Chairmen to hold a joint press conference, disassociating themselves from the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) and opposing the recent Supreme Court judgement on local government financial autonomy.
This directive was issued during a closed-door meeting on Friday, according to a reliable source.
Governor Makinde’s order comes in the wake of a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court, which declared that allocations to local governments should be paid directly to democratically elected local government councils.
The Supreme Court’s decision explicitly stated that state governments lack the authority to manage federal allocations on behalf of local governments, a practice deemed unconstitutional by the court.
However, Governor Makinde has taken a contrary stance, instructing that Oyo State’s Local Government allocations be directed to the State Joint Local Government Account instead.
The Governor has emphasized that the press release disassociating from ALGON and opposing the Supreme Court ruling must be made before he departs for his vacation. Furthermore, he warned that any chairman who fails to comply with this directive will face severe consequences.
