ALGON chair denies diversion of council funds in Ondo

The Chairman of the Ondo State chapter of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Donald Fasua, has dismissed claims that the state government is diverting funds belonging to local councils.

Some council chairmen had alleged that out of the monthly allocations running into hundreds of millions of naira from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), each council was left with only about N4 million to operate. According to them, a large portion of the funds was allegedly redirected to the state Ministry of Local Government.

One of the chairmen, who spoke anonymously, said, “We are made to return the substantial part of the funds into the Ministry of Local Government account, while we are left with N4 million.

You can verify from the BudgIT website that some local governments received as much as N644 million, N590 million and N405 million during the June FAAC.”

They argued that this arrangement had crippled their capacity to deliver basic services.

But Fasua, who also serves as chairman of Akure South Local Government Area, described the allegations as false.

He maintained that the councils are fully in charge of their finances and have been using them to execute development projects.

“It is not true. The governor is not diverting our funds. Since we got to office, we have embarked on several projects in the local governments,” Fasua told our correspondent. “In Akure South, I have bought 10 vehicles in five months, and road and water projects are ongoing across the state.

If the governor were dictating our finances, these achievements would not be possible.”

The state Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Amidu Takuro, also faulted the claims, insisting that the financial arrangement was a collective decision of council bosses.

“If anybody is not in agreement, he should come out openly.
What the government has been doing for them is a unanimous decision; nothing is imposed,” Takuro said.

The dispute comes amid renewed debates over local government autonomy in Nigeria.

In July, the Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutional independence of local councils and barred state governments from tampering with their allocations. Yet, concerns persist over the control of council funds through joint account systems in many states.