LG Crisis: ‘This Is No Longer Time To Interpret The Law But Time To Enforce It’

The Nigeria Association for Public Opinion Research (NAFPOR) has called on the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, to go beyond making public declarations and take concrete legal steps to address the constitutional crisis affecting local government administration in Nigeria.

Naija News reported that Fagbemi had condemned the unlawful dissolution of local government councils by state governors, describing it as a treasonable offence.

However, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Benjamin Atu, and released on Thursday, February 20, 2025, NAFPOR questioned the AGF’s reluctance to act decisively on the matter.

“If indeed the illegal removal of elected council Chairmen is a Treasonable Offence as the Attorney General has said, what steps has he taken? This is no longer time to interpret the law but time to enforce the law. If the Supreme Court declaration cannot be enforced by the IGP, then the AGF must accept responsibility for his inability to ensure enforcement,” the statement read.

The group criticized Fagbemi for merely expressing concerns rather than implementing solutions, stating that his role is not to lament with the masses but to ensure justice.

“Lateef Fagbemi has lamented enough. The duty of AGF is not to lament with the helpless masses but to bring them out of Lamentations. The AGF should understand that any declaration without actions/implementation is not only a waste of time, but also a strategy to technically mislead Nigerians into believing that Mr. President is genuinely fighting for local government autonomy, when in fact it is a mere lip service.

“How can the AGF explain that Edo State Governor has been meeting with the President since December, despite the fact that elected Chairmen have been removed illegally? Whatever discussion they had that was not about the reinstatement of suspended chairmen was not in the best interests of the people,” the statement added.

NAFPOR further argued that if local government autonomy were truly a priority, erring governors would have faced immediate consequences.

“If the local government autonomy is not a political gimmick, Governors who violate it would have faced consequences. The President should direct Edo and Osun governors to immediately reinstate council chairmen or risk losing allocations. Nigerians haven’t forgotten how former President Olusegun Obasanjo illegally withheld Lagos state allocations for years while the incumbent President was Governor.

“The President must introduce sanctions for actions and not lip service. Nigerians want an action-oriented government because governors no longer respect the constitution or the judiciary. In a clime where public outcry is listened to, the lack of compliance with judicial pronouncements would have been sufficient to give the AGF sleepless nights,” the organization stated.

In response to a statement made by Attorney General Fagbemi—who was represented by the Director of Civil Appeals, Tijani Gazali, during an event organized by the Nigerian Bar Association—NAFPOR also warned against the establishment of state police.

The group argued that actions taken by the Edo State Governor demonstrated how state police could be misused to oppress innocent citizens.

“The number of deaths in Osun State would have been a child’s play if Edo’s elected council chairmen had taken the law into their own hands to resume office. All of these constitutional crises would have been avoided by abiding by Supreme Court declaration of Local Government Autonomy,” NAFPOR noted.

The organization urged President Bola Tinubu and the AGF to uphold Nigeria’s democratic integrity by directing the Inspector General of Police to ensure the immediate reinstatement of suspended council chairmen in Edo and Osun States.

They also called for sanctions against any governor who defies the Supreme Court’s ruling on local government autonomy.

“Local Government Council autonomy, which would have been a five-star achievement under Bola Tinubu’s administration, is now being eroded by politicians determined to undermine Tinubu’s five-star legacy. The buck eventually stopped at the President’s table,” the statement concluded.