Toyyibat Qasim
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has recovered more than N5.3bn following a review of local government accounts in seven states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The commission also disclosed plans to compel all 774 local government councils across the country to publish their financial records, budgets, allocations, expenditures and other activities online in a fresh move to tackle corruption and strengthen accountability at the grassroots.
ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Adamu Aliyu (SAN), disclosed this on Thursday in Lafia, Nasarawa State, during the flag-off of the ICPC-National Information Technology Development Agency Local Government Websites Pilot.
Aliyu said the recovery of the funds exposed the scale of financial irregularities within local government administrations and reinforced the need for stronger monitoring of public resources, particularly following the financial autonomy granted to councils by the Supreme Court.
He noted that the July 2024 Supreme Court judgment, which affirmed the financial autonomy of local governments and ordered the direct payment of their statutory allocations, had increased the responsibility of council authorities to account for public funds.
“Autonomy brings responsibility. Funds that now flow directly to the councils must be spent openly and for the benefit of the people,” the ICPC chairman said.
Under the initiative, all local government councils are expected to operate websites using a standardised template developed through the commission’s Accountability and Corruption Prevention Programme for Local Governments.
The platforms will require councils to disclose their budgets, statutory allocations, internally generated revenue, expenditure profiles, audit reports, debts, procurement activities and human resource records.
They will also provide platforms for citizen engagement, whistleblowing and the disclosure of anti-corruption measures.
Aliyu explained that the initiative would enable residents to scrutinise how public funds were spent, while journalists, civil society organisations and oversight institutions would have easier access to information required to investigate possible financial misconduct.
“When these records are published regularly, citizens can follow the money, the media can ask informed questions and oversight institutions can detect risks early, before they become losses,” he said.
He, however, warned that the success of the programme would depend on the willingness of local government authorities to provide accurate and regularly updated information.
The ICPC chairman urged council chairmen to appoint dedicated officers to manage the websites, stressing that the initiative was designed to prevent corruption rather than witch-hunt local government officials.
Speaking at the event, the Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, said the digital initiative would address the difficulties residents encounter in accessing information about government activities, particularly those living in remote communities.
He illustrated the challenge with the example of a woman in a rural Nasarawa community who might have to travel more than 60 kilometres at her own expense to find out whether her local government had approved a community project or to lodge a complaint.
“We are in a digital age. Our people are online; therefore, government needs to be online to serve them better,” he said.
Abdullahi identified improved governance, citizen engagement and economic opportunities as the major objectives of the initiative.
He said NITDA would provide technical standards, develop website templates and train citizens, while encouraging local governments to engage indigenous technology experts to maintain the platforms.
The NITDA boss further disclosed that the agency had committed to registering domain names, developing and hosting websites for all 774 local government areas for at least one year.
“Our ambition is not 774 websites. It is 774 digitally empowered local governments delivering better experience to millions of Nigerians,” he said.
Flagging off the initiative, Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, designated the Nasarawa State Information Technology and Digital Economy Agency as the state’s technical lead for the programme.
Sule directed local government councils to take responsibility for the accuracy of information published on their respective websites, insisting that designated officers must verify details before uploading them.
He said the credibility of the project would depend on the availability of current and useful information rather than the ceremony marking its launch.
The governor also argued that public disclosure of local government allocations would eliminate excuses by council authorities over delays in paying workers’ salaries on the grounds that their statutory funds had not been received.
However, Sule challenged the ICPC and NITDA to extend the transparency initiative to state governments, insisting that citizens should also be able to track funds meant for local councils.
He offered Nasarawa State as the first state to embrace such disclosures.
The Emir of Lafia, Justice Sidi Bage Muhammad I (retd.), commended the ICPC, NITDA and the Nasarawa State Government for the initiative, while the Speaker of the Nasarawa State House of Assembly, Danladi Jatau, pledged the legislature’s support.
Jatau recalled that the Constitution empowered state Houses of Assembly to exercise oversight over local government finances.
The initiative builds on the ICPC’s Accountability and Corruption Prevention Programme for Local Governments, introduced following the Supreme Court’s July 11, 2024 judgment on local government financial autonomy.
The apex court had ruled that statutory allocations due to democratically elected local government councils from the Federation Account should be paid directly to them rather than being controlled by state governments.
It also declared unconstitutional the continued administration of local governments by unelected caretaker committees, insisting that councils must be governed by democratically elected officials.
Despite the landmark judgment, concerns have continued over transparency, accountability and the management of funds allocated to local governments.
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