The Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Abia State chapter, Mr Chinedu Ekeke, has explained that allocations from the Federation Account are still being paid through the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC) because the Federal Government is yet to fully implement the Supreme Court judgment on local government financial autonomy.
Ekeke made this known on Friday at the Government House in Umuahia while reacting to allegations by a member of the opposition party that Gov. Alex Otti was diverting funds meant for the development of rural communities in the state.
He dismissed the allegations, saying that the Abia State Government was not starving local government areas (LGAs) of funds needed for projects.
According to him, funds from the Federation Account currently do not go directly to the LGAs but are first paid into the JAAC, in line with existing financial arrangements.
“On the Supreme Court judgment, the local governments are funded from the JAAC accounts because the funds go to the JAAC accounts. They don’t come to the local governments straight,” Ekeke said.
He added that the Federal Government was still considering the appropriate framework for implementing the Supreme Court ruling on local government financial autonomy.
“The Federal Government is probably trying to look for a way to handle that,” he said.
Ekeke, who spoke on behalf of other council chairmen in the state, reaffirmed their support for the Abia State Government and maintained that funds released to the LGAs were being applied to grassroots development across the state.