The Supreme Court will deliver its judgment tomorrow, Thursday, July 11, in the case filed by the Federal Government against the 36 state governors, seeking full autonomy for the 774 local governments in the country.
According to a document seen at the apex court, all parties involved have been notified through their respective lawyers.
It was also observed that the notice of judgment delivery was served to the Federal Government through the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice at the Federal Ministry of Justice in Abuja.
Justice Garba Mohammed Lawal had, on Thursday, June 13, reserved judgment in the suit and announced that parties would be notified once the judgment was ready. Justice Lawal, leading a 7-man panel of Justices, made this announcement after both the Federal Government and the governors presented their cases.
Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, represented the Federal Government, while the 36 state governors were represented by their respective lawyers. The AGF urged the Supreme Court to grant all the reliefs sought by the Federal Government and provide full autonomy to local governments as the third tier of government in Nigeria, as envisaged by the constitution. He argued that this autonomy should include direct allocation of funds from the federation account to the local governments, instead of the current practice where governors control the councils’ funds.
The AGF also sought an order prohibiting the unlawful dissolution of local government officials by state governors. In contrast, the governors,