In Nigeria, local government authority is the third tier of government. Given that it helps to entrench democracy at the grassroots, section 7 (subsection 1) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended provides that Local Government system should be administered democratically by elected Chairmen and Councillors.

The constitution also empowered 36 states of the federation with an exception of Abuja Council Areas to conduct elections into their respective Council Areas once in three years through a well established electoral board otherwise referred to as State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC).

However, while most states adhere to this, Anambra had not, since the expiration of the tenure of those elected for 1999 to 2003. Governor Chris Ngige, who governed the state under the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), administered Council Areas with Transition Committee (TC) members empowered by the provisions of the Local Government Law of 1999, which has now undergone several amendments.

The administration of Mr Peter Obi managed to conduct local government election towards the end of his second term in office around January 2013, obviously because it became politically expedient for his government to use the local government poll to garner support from the vast majority of citizens at the grassroots in preparation for the November 17 (2013) governorship election which the party’s candidate, Willie Obiano won, and was subsequently sworn-in on March 17, 2014. Obiano had not only refused to conduct any round of the election but has continuously reappointed same group of party loyalists as TC members.

RENEWED AGITATION AND THE ARTHUR EZE CONNECTION.

Late July, 2020 an Anambra state born oil magnate, Prince Arthur Eze, threatened to sue Governor Willie Obiano, for allegedly shortchanging traditional rulers in the state, by denaying the monarchs what he(Eze) claimed was their entitlements from the local government funds.

Eze, who was addressing a meeting of traditional rulers held at the palace of the traditional ruler of Ukwulu community, Dunukofia LGA, Igwe Peter Uyanwa, recalled that there was a national policy that came to fore during the Sani Abacha regime mandating that five per cent of the local government allocation should be given to traditional institutions within the LGA.

According to him, “In the North and in the South-West, they still pay the five per cent of the local government allocations to the traditional institutions. In the South-East only Enugu State pays that. Down here, that is not the case. What is Obiano doing with that money? He is not building industries, nothing. What is he doing with the money meant to keep our traditional institutions strong? In a few days’ time, I will take him to court to explain why he is not paying our traditional rulers that money. That’s wickedness. Igbo people hate themselves.”
Although the Governor did not personally respond to these statements, his aides are all over the social media abusing Prince Eze. And in what seemed like a vendetta, Igwe Uyanwa, who hosted the meetings, where the issue came up, was subsequently suspended for one year by the government.

Also, the Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress NLC, Anambra State chapter, Comrade Jerry Nnubia, in a recent interview with newsmen, regretted that the state was yet to conduct LG poll despite that the congress has been clamouring for democratically elected local government officials for many years.
Nnubia, whose congress also tried in the past to convince the state house of Assembly to pass Local Government Autonomy bill to no avail, was however optimistic that having elected council officials were capable of addressing the spate of unemployment at the grassroots, as well as increasing youths participation in the governance.

On his part, the State Secretary of PDP, Barr. John Okoli Akirika, described it as “a disservice to the people of the state’’ and an indication of Obiano’s failure to get his priority right."
“Quite surprisingly, the legislature has been indulging him in this illegality. The actions border on lack of accountability on the side of the executive and irresponsibility on the part of the legislature to demand that the government do the needful. The executive should have continued with the democratic structures it inherited and the legislature should have insisted on continuing with the democratic system they inherited,” he added.

THE LEGAL PERSPECTIVE

However, recent agitations for the conduct of council poll would have been avoided if the citizens had taken advantage of an earlier court judgement to that effect.
Anambra State High Court sitting in Awka and presided over by the then Chief Judge, Justice Peter Umeadi had on May 18, 2017, sacked the local government caretaker chairmen and councillors appointed by Governor Obiano, and ordered the Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission to conduct local government election in the state within 90 days of the judgment, in line with section 64(1) of the Local Government law of Anambra State (as amended).

Delivering judgment in Suit No: A/182/2016, All Progressive Congress (APC) & 21 others V Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission & 28 Others, Justice Umeadi held that "I am of the firm view that that the 1st and 2nd defendants in the circumstance as the tenure of the 9th and 2nd defendants were coming to a close in 2015 ought not to have surrendered their and mandate to conduct elections as they did. I hold that in the circumstance the 1st defendant is bound to return to conduct that election since the appointment of the 9th-29th defendants into a Transition Committee is unconstitutional, unlawful, illegal, null and void.

"From the foregoing, the plaintiffs have indulged in a cacophony of prayers most time clashing against each other. See paragraph 51,66,70,71,and 72. There are reliefs which block and contradict others. I think that so much as findings have been made in this suit the court has the powers and the duty to make viable orders which in end are enforceable, flowing from the originating summons and serve the end of justice and in a suit of this nature, public policy."

"I am of the firm view that the 1st, 3rd and 4th defendants not having been able to show evidence of an emergency or any of such situation which makes it impossible to hold local government elections at the end of the tenure of 9th-29th defendants who were sworn in on 13/1/2014, the purport of constituting them into a transition Committee, when there should have been a full blown election conducted by 1st and 2nd defendants, is unacceptable, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect.

" In the circumstances, it becomes necessary that the way ought to be made to allow the 1st defendants to conduct fresh elections which power was unfortunately abdicated in 2015."

The court therefore made the following orders:
" A) It is hereby declared that section 7(1) of the constitution of federal Republic of Nigeria 1999(Amended), section 4(1) and section 59 of the local government law of Anambra state 1999, guarantees the existence of a democratically elected government in the 21 local government councils of Anambra state.

B) it is hereby declared that section 208 (2)-(6) as amended, were made in consonance with good lagislative practice to fill a vacuum which may occur in the future, and in this case, is in tandem with the constitution of the the federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 and was validly made by the 6th defandants and is a competent law to be put in use by the 4th defendant in appropriate circumstances.

C) it is declared that there is no basis at law and in fact either to declare the 2nd-22nd plaintiffs as winners of election to the named local government councils in Anambra state or to be issued certificates of return as there were no elections held, and they were not validly nominated candidates of a political party as envisage by section 64(3) of the local government law of Anambra state.

D) it is hereby declared that the appointment of the 9th to 29th defendants as chairman transition Committee at the expiration of their tenure as Chairmen of elected Council on 12/1/2016 by the 4th defendant in the absence of an emergency or such like situation is wrongful, unconstitutional, illegal, null, void and of no effect.

E) it is hereby ordered that 1st defendant pursuant to section 64(1) of the local government law 1999(as Amended) appoint a date within 90 days from today for elections into the offices of Chairmen and members of the local government councils which became vacant on 12/1/2016".

Interestingly, Justice Umeadi has since retired from the bench and is now a card carying member of the APGA ruling government in the state.

THE JUDGEMENT STILL STAND

A lawyer, Mr Ifendu Okwubanego, said the judgement still stand because according to him, the state government never challenged it. “They only filed a notice of appeal at the Appeal Court at Enugu and abandoned the matter. I challenge the state government to show us any other court ruling that is preventing them from organising local government election, or any other judgement that supercedes Umeadi's judgement, on that matter."

Mr Okwubanego enjoined all citizens to support the current agitation by lending their voices to the demand for enforcement of the High Court judgment."Governor Willie Obiano should implement the said judgment, since there is no appellate judgment that prevents the conduct of local government polls. Failure to do so, will increase the level of anger against this government by highly influencial personalities like Prince Arthur Eze and traditional rulers."


On his part, a public affairs analyst, Mr Ejiofor Umegbogu blamed the non-conduct of the election on the existence of weak and uncoordinated opposition parties.


He contended that leaders of the main opposition parties in the state namely PDP and APC, ought to have taken the fight for local government election further by applying to the Court for judgment enforcement, or alternatively, urge the court to order the Accountant General for the federation to stop further remittances to the 21 local government areas, pending the enthronement of democratically elected officials in that tier of government.