I saw this piece of good news first on the timeline of a lady friend, Zara Onyinye that the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has directed all financial institutions, public servants and other stakeholders to comply with the provisions of the guidelines that block the illegal withdrawal of monies belonging to Local Councils by State Governments all over the federation beginning from 1st of June, 2019.
My inquisitiveness about the authenticity of this good news paid of when I saw it online published by a respectable blogger ABIA FACTS. According to the report, investigation by the Intelligence Unit uncovered that cash withdrawal and transactions of the State, Joint Local Government Accounts, poses biggest corruption, money laundering and security threats at the grassroots levels and to the entire financial system and the country as a whole. According to the Unit, with effect from 1st of June, 2019 any bank that allows any transaction from any local government without monies first reaching a particular local government account will be sanctioned 100 per cent both locally and internationally. In addition, a provision is also made to the effect that there shall be no cash withdrawal from any local government account for a CUMULATIVE AMOUNT exceeding 500,000 Naira per day. Any other transaction must be through valid cheques or electronic funds transfer.
Good and fantastic news! From 1999 till date, Local Government Administration has remained only in the 1999 constitution and nothing practical on ground to justify the creation of the local government administration. The State Governors have stubbornly refused, neglected and objected to allowing a democratically elected local government administration with responsibility to the electorates. They have perfected their demonic and plundering act of appointing Transition Local Government Administrations by appointing their stooges and cronies as local government chairmen and with whom they have been bleeding the local government funds by sheer diversions of funds meant for the development of the local governments. No State and Local Government in the federation is spared. It is not surprising therefore that there are no meaningful developmental projects in all the local government areas throughout Nigeria despite billions allocated to them monthly. IT IS A BIG BIG SHAME! I raised alarm on this SCAM IN CHANNELS TELEVISION OVER TEN YEARS AGO(GO TO YOUTUBE WITH MY NAME AND TYPE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION) and no government paid attention to the biggest scam perpetrated by the State Governors until now when this measure is sought to be put in place.
WARNING AND DANGERS AHEAD.
WE have heard pieces of good news like this before and thereafter the implementation enters into “a voicemail”. Let the policy implementers be warned in advance that the State Governors will be planing now how to compromise them and ensure that this policy suffers irreparable setback, mark my words! Two, they will be planing in conjunction with the Transition Council Chairmen how to observe this new policy in breach, again mark my words!
For effective implementation, the PRESIDENCY, EFCC AND NFIU MUST COLLABORATE TO ENSURE FULL COMPLIANCE AND IMPLEMENTATION!
Nigerians wait and watch as the Policy kicks off on the 1st of June, 2019 and it is our prayer that this policy will be observed in full compliance with EFCC monitoring how the Local Government Chairmen will utilize these funds to develop the local government Areas across the Nation. THERE IS STILL HOPE FOR NIGERIA. May God bless Nigeria!
Monday Onyekachi Ubani Esq,
Legal Practitioner.
