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Account For LG Funds, PDP Asks Niger Governor

The Niger State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked Governor Abubakar Bello to account for the Local Government (LG) funds collected by … Continue reading Account For LG Funds, PDP Asks Niger Governor


Governor Bello Vows To Track Down Those Behind Attacks On Niger Communities
A file photo of Niger State Governor, Abubakar Bello.

Niger,PDPThe Niger State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked Governor Abubakar Bello to account for the Local Government (LG) funds collected by the state in the last one year.

The PDP said apart from the payment of local government staff salaries, no dime has been released to any of the 25 local government areas in the state since May 2015 for capital project execution.

The new Chairman of the party in the State, Tanko Beji, challenged the All Progressives Congress (APC) led administration on Thursday during a session with journalists in Minna.

He lamented that activities are grounded in the local government areas because the chairmen and their councilors do not have money to work.

“We want to know how much has accrued to the local government areas since the APC government came into office, how they spent the money (and) under what law was the money spent,” he stated.

Beji, who is a legal practitioner, noted that Governor Bello does not have the constitutional power to abrogate the ‘state local government joint account’, as he had proposed from the end of May.

He said that the state local government joint account was a creation of the constitution, citing Section 162 (6) of the 1999 Constitution as amended saying: ‘No executive governor could by fiat abrogate the law’.

“We are watching at the appropriate time we will take necessary action to protect the law,” he added.

The PDP Chairman also challenged the Governor to tell Nigerians why he had refused to assent to the 2016 Appropriation Bill passed by the House of Assembly over three months ago, and why he has been spending money without the bill being assented to.

“This is a serious constitutional breach. We will not watch the constitution being violated with impunity,” he maintained.

Beji disclosed that he would soon raise a petition to the Code of Conduct Tribunal on the alleged non-swearing in of Special Advisers appointed by Governor Bello.

He pointed out that their being in office meant that they did not declare their assets as provided by law, describing it as an unconstitutional act.

The Niger State House of Assembly approved 15 special advisers for Governor Bello but only seven had been appointed and have assumed office.