The Presidential candidate of the Young Progressives Party in the 2019 Presidential election, Kingsley Moghalu, has advocated the scrapping of local government system in Nigeria.
The former deputy governor of the Central Bank made the call on Friday while speaking as a discussant at the 3rd Awujale Lecture in honour of Oba Sikuru Adetona’s 85th birthday, at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun state.
Speaking on the topic: “Grassroots governance and the underbelly of Nigeria’s Political Architecture”, Moghalu decried the dearth of governance at the local government level, saying the essence of creating the third tier of government has been jettisoned, hence should it be scrapped.
Proffering an alternative, Moghalu called for a more robust grassroots administrative system where traditional rulers will be given formal advisory role in government.
Local government as a third tier of government in Nigeria is a product of the 1979 Constitution, but has been bedeviled with so many challenges, among which are corruption, nepotism, incompetency.
Reacting to the recent decentralization of Kano Emirate system, Moghalu said Emir of Kano’s throne has been bastardized and balkanized with the actions of government. He expressed worry over the process leading to the emergence of traditional rulers in Nigeria, saying government have no business in appointing traditional rulers.
Moghalu called on Nigerians to campaign for electoral and constitutional reform if we are to experience good governance that we are all craving for.
The Awujale lecture is an annual event which birthed three years ago, and this year’s edition coincides with the 85th birthday of the monarch. Oba Sikiri Adetola was installed as Awujale of Ijebuland on 2nd April 1960.
