Abuja, NIGERIA – A non-governmental organisation, Mssrs Nafesoje Empowerment Foundation has given the 17 local government chairmen in Enugu State a 7-day deadline to provide an explanation for the three years’ worth of federal allocation.
The document that was released to journalists in Enugu on Friday pertains to the years 2020, 2021, and 2022. The total amount under scrutiny is more than N55 billion.
The Nafesoje Empowerment Foundation has threatened to take legal action against the 17 local government chairmen in Enugu State if they fail to respond to a letter from the foundation’s lawyer, C.I. Odo Esq, demanding an explanation for the revenue allocated to the local governments between 2020 and 2022. The letter, titled “Demand for Proper Account/Explanation of the Revenue Allocated to the Seventeen (17) Local Governments Council of Enugu State from 2020-2022. A Pre-Action Notice,” was sent to the chairmen by the foundation’s house located in Trans Ekulu, Enugu, Enugu State.
The statement read that the Foundation being a non-governmental organization is focused on promoting good governance and accountability in governance. The foundation has been monitoring the 17 local governments in Enugu State for the past three years, and upon discovering issues with their activities, has decided to make this move and demand an explanation.
“Our brief further shows that despite the huge revenue allocations received by the above mentioned 17 Local Government Council, there is no comprehensible account or explanation by the various Local Government chairmen on how the allocations were spent or rather the projects the allocations were used to execute.
The silence by the Various Local Government Chairmen on the need for proper accountability of public funds is worrisome and most importantly it is contrary to Local Government Administration Laws of Enugu State, and most importantly the essence of Governance.
“Thus, on the strength of the above, we have the unequivocal instructions of our Client to demand an account of the revenue allocated to each of the 17 Local Governments Council by the Executive Chairmen of the various Local Governments Council, by a detailed project executed between 2020, 2021 and 2022.
They explained that their legal action against the 17 local government chairmen in Enugu State will not prevent them from petitioning anti-graft agencies to investigate, possible arrest, and prosecute the chairmen involved in the headship of the 17 local governments council within the period under review.
The letter from the Nafesoje Empowerment Foundation’s lawyer has given the 17 local government chairmen in Enugu State a seven-day deadline to respond to their demand for proper account/explanation of the revenue allocated to the local governments between 2020 and 2022. If the chairmen fail to respond within the stipulated time, the foundation will proceed to take legal action against them in a court of law without further recourse to them.
Disturbing level of poverty in Enugu State
The huge number of poor people and out-of-school children is a recipe for disaster in Enugu State. It already having a huge effect on the insecurity in the State.
The poverty index is mostly experienced in rural areas with women and children being the most affected.
The survey was conducted by the NBS, the National Social Safety-Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI).
It is instructive to note that in its 2022 Multidimensional Poverty Index Survey 63 percent of the population of Enugu people are poor and lack basic social amenities.
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