Governor Chukwuemeka Soludo of Amambra State says the Supreme Court judgment affirming constitutional rights of local governments is good for democracy.
Soludo said this while addressing State House correspondents after a visit to President Bola Tinubu on Thursday.
He said: “Supreme Court is the final authority and, as a democrat, I believe in the rule of law.
“And once the Supreme Court has spoken, it has spoken.
“I haven’t seen the document, but we need resources to get down to the grassroots and we need the people’s money to work for them at all levels, whether at the federal, state or local government.
“We need to promote accountability.
“We need to promote transparency in the utilisation of public resources at all levels, to be able to lift the burden of the common man.”
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On the implication of the judgment for Anambra State, which has no elected local government officials, Soludo said the state Independent Electoral Commission law had just been passed.
He said: “The institutions to organise the election are being put together.
“It is a promise I made during my inauguration, and when I make a promise, I am serious about keeping it.
“But even without elected local government officials, we’ve made sure that the resources of the local government get down to the local governments to address their needs.
“For my state, there has been a lingering litigation that stopped local government elections in the past, and that particular litigation is still on.
“So, we’re going to see how we handle all of that, and to organise a local government election as appropriate.
“I’m a believer in having a democratic system.
“Like I said, I made a firm commitment to that and I don’t say what I will not do.”
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