The Conference for United Political Parties ( CUPP) has described Mudashiru Obasanjo, speaker of Lagos House of Assembly as a threat to Local Government autonomy.
Mark Adebayo, CUPP spokesman, said this while responding to the purported suspension of the chairman of Alimosho LGA by the Obasa-led assembly.
Adebayo accused President Bola Tinubu government of paying lip service to local government autonomy.
He said as things stand now, governors were allowing state legislature to control LGAs
“The Federal Government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu merely pays lip service to local government autonomy whilst in practice it is working actively to undermine the autonomy and stability of local governments across the country. We are all living witnesses to the carnage and reckless violence unleashed on Rivers State people last Saturday during the recently held local government election in that state. That act of brigandage is not only reprehensible but outrightly criminal and terroristic in nature. What happened there was tantamount to state-sponsored terrorism.”
“What they failed to achieve by bullets and bombs in Rivers State, they are trying to achieve by other means in Lagos state and to extend it, systematically, to other states. The whole idea is to cripple local government administration and turn it into the errand organ of the Federal Government. There is a deliberate, systematic onslaught against Local Government autonomy by this pretentious Tinubu administration.
“For instance, what is currently playing out in Lagos state, which is the home state of the president, on local government administration is extremely worrisome.
“There is a serious attempt to subjugate the local governments under the authority of the state assembly in Lagos state to the extent that, judging by the current shenanigans of constitutional amendments to local government administration in Lagos state currently being undertaken by the Lagos state House of Assembly, the control of markets is to be taken away from local governments and put under the purview of LagosstateHouse of Assembly. How ridiculous! How could a legislative arm want to take over the executive responsibilities of a local government that has elected executive councils complete with its own legislative arm?
“It is a known fact that the current Speaker of the Lagos state Assembly is a close ally of President Bola Tinubu and it is clear that he couldn’t be orchestrating such constitutional aberration without the direct prompting his boss in Abuja. Therefore, it can safely be said that the president is trying to undermine local government councils through his proxies. If what is playing out in Lagos state, against the unequivocal judgment of the Supreme Court on local government autonomy, is allowed to stand, it may spread to other states and further render local governments prostrate and ineffective.
“Authorities in Lagos have over the years allowed LAHA to cross the line of “decency” and this has given rise to a legislature that is usurping the powers of Governor and the LGs . Is Lagos House of Assembly bigger than the people who elected LG Chairmen or their councils who have the legal powers to remove an erring Chairman? This is utter nonsense, arbitrariness, ignorance, hypocrisy, arrogance, incompetence, recklessness and lawlessness!
“How can a House of Assembly be purporting to do this and defending it? They have been getting away with this nonsense in the past but enough is enough! Even the issue of market control which led to the purported suspension of the Alimosho LG chairman is squarely on the residual list reserved for LG’s legislative arm. What is the business of a state assembly dabbling into that? Moreover, anything that has to do with crimes and insecurity is the responsibility of the police and the Governor who is the chief executive of the State .
“Like in their fraudulent Renewed Hope mantra, it is clear that their claim of promoting local government autonomy is a mere mirage and grand scheme to dominate the LGs whilst undermining state Governors. It is another grand scheme in preparation for their 2027 ambition to manipulate themselves back into power.
“All Nigerians can see clearly and feel the full effects of the horrible records of this government in the areas of the terminally sick economy, appalling insecurity, horrible human rights regime, political persecution under the guise of fighting corruption, unprecedented hunger. Suicide rate has become an epidemic under this grossly incompetent Tinubu administration. There is no excuse valid enough for the atrocious and murderous neo-liberal economic policies of this government. It only goes to demonstrate the fact the Tinubu government has nothing good for Nigerians other than extreme hardship and unmitigated suffering.
“We make bold to reemphasize that Mr. Bola Tinubu prepared very well to be president, but never prepared to govern. That is the major factor in the current calamitous state of the nation.
“While we call in Nigerians to remain resilient, we appeal to them to cooperate and collaborate with the opposition political Parties to free them from the undeserved suffering that the Tinubu administration has unleashed on them in the last 14 months of relentless state socioeconomic terrorism. In 2027, we, the people, must organize democratically to make this happen and Nigerians should trust us to make this happen.
“We are not unaware of the clandestine sabotage activities of state agents against opposition figures and political Parties. All the crises you witness today in some opposition Parties are deliberate external interferences by state agents to cripple the opposition. But, we promise them that they will fail! We are strong as ever and we will not abdicate our mandate to rescue Nigeria and Nigerians from the retrogressive forces that are holding it captive.”
