LG Council Cabinet Lists Ready Soon - LASG

Research By Araba, Olawale Enifenilanfe

LG Council Cabinet Lists Ready Soon - LASG

Tension has continued to rise among party stakeholders as council chairmen in the 57 Local Governments (LGs) and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) await party directives to announce their cabinets three months after the polls.

Many politicians are running  from pillar to the post, lobbying for posts in the executive cabinet of their various local councils.

Statutorily, the council chairmen are expected to constitute their cabinets within three months of their assumption of office after the list should have been ratified by the Ministry of Local Government and Community Affairs.

According to the administrative guidelines, the offices to be occupied in the cabinet include  the Secretary to the Local Government, Supervisors for Works, Education, Health, Environment, Agriculture and special advisers on revenue and boundary matters.

However, none of the local council chairmen in Lagos State has released any list of their cabinets just six days to the celebration of their 100 Days in office.

The newly-elected 57 council chairmen were officially sworn in by Governor Babaajide Sanwo-Olu on July 27, 2021.

This has further increased the tension in the local governments as many anticipating candidates are getting more nervous about their fates.

ECHONEWS gathered that there are few factors delaying the constitution of local council executive cabinets across the state.

First, it was gathered that the delay is due to that fact that some of the elected council chairmen are new in the system and need to be familiar to the system before making any political appointment of those who would work with them.

Again, those council chairmen who were returned for their second term in office are expected to pay the  severance payments to those who worked with them as cabinet members during their first administration.

They were asked to settle them withing two months before constituting new cabinets.

The returned council bosses had pleaded with the state governor to give them sometime to settle the payment.

The Governing Advisory Council (GAC) gave them 100 days to pay the severance of their former cabinet members and constitute new ones.

Few days to their the political stakeholders have been waiting impatiently to see the lists to know who makes the cabinet as it is expected that each council chairman would release the list any moment from now.

Another factor that further delays the lists in some local council areas is caused by party stakeholders as the chairman has to properly consult the party leaders to cone up with the list.

ECHONEWS gathered that in some local governments, the lists have been made but yet to be approved.

This has created more tension among party loyalists and many others anticipating to be part of the cabinet.

There has been increase in lobby by the politicians and those who had earlier been promised slots in the cabinet of the local councils.

As earlier reported by ECHONEWS, the lobby began as soon as it was clear that the tenure of the former officials was coming to an end.

In Ejigbo LCDA, groups and leaders of various caucuses mobilized to the campaign venues of the chairman, Hon. Monsuru Bello (Obe) to make cases for more representation of their interests in return for their votes in his favour in the July 24 elections.

For instance, groups were falling over each other in Aigbaka ward in support of politicians who want to retain their offices or dislodge their contenders.

Article 17: ‘Tenure of office’, column I and II of the All Progressives Congress (APC) party’s constitution provides that appointees can only spend two successive terms in office.

It reads:

“i. Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, all officers of the Party elected or appointed into the Party’s organs shall serve in such organs for four (4) years and shall be eligible for re-election or re-appointment for another period of four (4) years only, provided that an officer elected or appointed to fill a vacancy arising from death, resignation or otherwise shall.

Acknowledgement:

ArabaInfo. Media Communications.