AbdulRazaq AbdulRahman, Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and Governor of Kwara State, announced on Friday that state governors are pleased with the Supreme Court’s judgment granting fiscal autonomy to local government areas.

Speaking to State House correspondents before a meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Governor AbdulRahman expressed that the ruling relieves governors of a significant burden and marks a positive shift in the devolution of power to the third tier of government.

When asked for his reaction to the Supreme Court’s judgment, the NGF Chairman stated, “We welcome the ruling of the Supreme Court. Compliance is mandatory, and our Attorney Generals have applied for the enrollment order, which we will study carefully. By and large, governors are happy with the devolution of power in respect to local government autonomy. It relieves the burden on governors. Our people really don’t know how much states spend in bailing out local governments, and that’s the issue there.”

Governor AbdulRahman emphasized that the NGF has requested the enrollment of the judgment and will review it in a meeting scheduled for next Wednesday to determine the way forward. “The forum will meet next Wednesday to look at the issue comprehensively and then come up with a resolution on that. Like I said, we haven’t seen the enrollment of the court order, so we really don’t know what is in there,” he added.

Regarding the impact on Kwara State, AbdulRahman assured that the judgment would not negatively affect the state as the government has never interfered with local council funds. “It’s not going to affect the state; we’ve never tampered with local government funds. So, it’s going to continue. Local governments will need to manage themselves, especially with the upcoming minimum wage, ensuring salaries are paid and traditional rulers receive their 5% share. Those are the main issues,” he said.

Governor AbdulRahman, accompanied by his Imo State counterpart, Hope Uzodimma, also mentioned that their visit to the Presidential Villa included discussions with the President on various issues such as the minimum wage and other national matters affecting states. “We’ve seen the President on various issues from the minimum wage, which he discussed with labor, the Supreme Court ruling, and other national issues that concern states as well. It’s comprehensive,” he concluded.