Members of the Lagos State House of Assembly have called on the National Assembly to grant constitutional recognition to the 37 local council development areas (LCDAs) created by President Bola Tinubu in 2003 during his tenure as governor.
At a sitting presided over by the speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, the legislators pushed for the formal listing of these LCDAs as full-fledged local government areas (LGAs).
The assembly is currently considering a “Bill for a Law to Provide for the Local Government System, Establishment and Administration, and to Consolidate All Laws on Local Government Administration.” The bill seeks to clarify and enhance the legal framework governing local government operations in Lagos.
Despite reports suggesting that the bill aimed to scrap the LCDAs, Speaker Obasa refuted these claims. Instead, he explained that the legislative review seeks to bolster the LCDAs and ensure they work effectively alongside their parent LGAs.
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He added that the review would examine the implications of a recent Supreme Court judgment on financial autonomy for local governments and ensure that LCDAs are not shortchanged in their operations.
Obasa also emphasised the need for the National Assembly to formally recognise the 37 LCDAs, citing comparisons with other states.
“Kano has 44 local governments, and Jigawa was created out of Kano with 27. It is time for a review of the revenue-sharing formula by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission to reflect Lagos’ contribution,” he argued.
The Chairman of the Committee on Local Government, Hon. Sanni Okanlawon, reported that many stakeholders missed the earlier public hearing on the bill. This prompted the assembly to agree on conducting another public hearing to gather more input.
The assembly also invited the state’s Attorney General, Lawal Pedro, to provide legal interpretation of the Supreme Court’s ruling on local government autonomy and its impact on the joint accounts between local governments and LCDAs.
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