President Bola Tinubu has issued a stark warning to state governors, threatening to enact an executive order that would bypass their control and ensure the direct allocation of funds from the Federation Account to local government areas.
The warning was delivered on Friday during the 15th National Executive Committee meeting of the All Progressives Congress in Abuja.
Citing the recent landmark Supreme Court judgment that affirmed the financial autonomy of local governments, Tinubu criticized the continued practice of governors withholding statutory allocations meant for councils. He told the assembly of party leaders, including governors, that his administration had so far exercised restraint but would not hesitate to act.
“The Supreme Court has capped it for you again, saying, ‘give them their money directly,'” the President stated.
In a pointed reference to his executive authority, he added, “If you wait for my executive order, because I have the knife, I have the yam, I will cut it.”
