EFCC Pledges to Monitor Local Governments to Ensure Good Governance
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has pledged to closely monitor local government activities to ensure good governance, accountability, and transparency. This follows the recent Supreme Court judgement granting financial autonomy to local governments.
The EFCC made this commitment at a national dialogue organized by Agora Policy, themed "Enthroning Accountability in Local Government in Nigeria", in Abuja on Monday. A representative of the EFCC Chairman, Friday Ebelo, emphasized that good governance encompasses three essential elements: accountability, transparency, and citizen participation. He stressed that dedicated and development-minded individuals are needed to manage local government administrations.
The EFCC emphasized its commitment to scrutinizing local government activities, stating that it must make a deliberate effort to bring the presence of governance to the people, ensuring that citizens feel the impact of governance in their daily lives, particularly in areas such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure development.
The commission also warned that "business as usual" would not be tolerated, indicating a renewed focus on ensuring local governments are held accountable for their actions.
Waziri Adio, founder of Agora Policy, emphasized the need for reform in rural government areas, stating that local government areas are the least trusted, least capacitated, and least interesting to the public. He noted that despite being expected to perform crucial functions, local government areas are failing to meet expectations.
Adio cited a survey by Afrobarometer, which showed that only 28 per cent of citizens trusted local government administration, down from 58 per cent in 2000. He advocated for increased awareness, engagement, and accountability, saying that fixing the broken representative government requires involving people directly in decision-making.
Adio added that increasing awareness, engagement, and accountability requires vertical, horizontal, and diagonal accountability mechanisms.
Kole Shettima, Africa Director of the MacArthur Foundation, emphasized the need for local governance reform, citing a conversation where a villager expected President Buhari to fix a local water issue. He noted that this shows the mentality of our people, expecting the president to fix all problems. Shettima commended the Agora Policy Center for promoting policy conversations and acknowledged local government efforts to involve citizens in decision-making.
