It is no longer news that the local government tier of government in Nigeria is under siege, because of the manner in which the state governors meddle in the affairs of the tier of government, supposedly meant to bring governance down to the grassroots. No political party as of date in Nigeria can claim to have clean records as far as the anomaly witnessed in the local government council is concerned, and it raises a prima facie presumption that even our opposition parties might not be innocent of the blame usually heaped at the doorsteps of the ruling party. It is only in the FCT Abuja that there is some semblance of democratic governance at the local government tier of government, and this is mainly because of the fact that the election into the FCT Area Councils is conducted by INEC, as opposed to most state electoral commissions, which are remote controlled by the governors of the respective federating Nigerian states.

However, what is found worrisome in recent times is the development in which the people are asked to pay money before they can participate in local government election, as is the case with the Enugu State Local Government Law of 2004, wherein contestants willing to participate in local government elections are to pay money to the Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission before they can do that. The existence of such laws demanding that people pay money before they can participate in local government election, leaves one to imagine if the local government system has officially become a business venture where people have to deposit huge amount of money, as high as N200, 000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira) with the electoral body, before they can participate in a local government election. One would be curious to know the first line of action that one will take once he wins an election into a local government council of Enugu State. Of course, it will be to recoup the money spent during the electioneering period, including the one paid to the Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission as required by the Enugu State Local Government Law of 2004.

It is high time the Nigerian masses rose up to rescue the local government tier of government from the abuse it has suffered in the hands of state governors and members of the house of assembly who make laws for the local government system of government, without considering the implications of those laws made. The local government tier of government is supposed to bring governance to the grassroots, and Nigerians cannot enjoy the benefit of democratic governance as expected, if the people are not allowed to participate in the tier of government, nearest to them.