The Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Niger State Council have called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to give local government councils in the country administrative and political autonomy in addition to the financial autonomy already granted.
The President of NULGE in Niger State, Comrade Idrees Abdulkareem Lafene, made the call while addressing the chairmen and secretaries of the union from the 25 LGAs of the state, along with other members of organised labour in the state, at Labour House Minna shortly after embarking on a rally to appreciate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Supreme Court for the landmark judgement.
The NULGE president, who is also the Niger State Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), said the rally embarked upon by members of the union was to register their appreciation to the president for the Supreme Court judgement that granted financial autonomy to LGAs in the country.
Comrade Lafene, while describing the judgement by the Supreme Court as a welcome development, said that giving the councils' administrative and political autonomy will bring the needed development to the grass-roots level.
According to him, granting local government councils administrative and political autonomy will go a long way in reducing the incessant cases of insecurity experienced in most parts of the local governments in the state.
He also called on the president to give a marching order to INEC to conduct local government council elections to ensure transparency, saying that by doing so, the vote of people at the grass roots will be counted while the handpicking of candidates by the party in power will be eliminated.
The NULGE boss, who had earlier applauded both the president and the Supreme Court for giving the local governments financial freedom, however, said that the autonomy will enable the people at the grassroots to enjoin the dividends of democracy.
Both the state chairman of NUT and TUC, in their separate goodwill messages, appreciated the president and supreme court for doing justice by granting autonomy to the local government councils in the country, which according to them was long overdue.
The duo, however, called on local government council chairmen to be faithful and deliver dividends of democracy to their people, warned against abuse of office, and also avoided spending recklessly.