A new bill passed by the Osun State House of Assembly has empowered elected local government chairmen to have full authority to appoint heads of Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs).
A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, Olamide Tiamiyu, on Tuesday said the assembly passed the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (Amendment 1) Bill, 2024, and the Osun State Local Government Areas (Creation & Administration) (Amendment 7) Bill, 2024, to law.
Osun Defender reports that in the new bill, the elected council chairmen will appoint Chief Administrators for the LCDAs within their respective jurisdictions.
It was gathered that the newly passed bill is part of the moves to further grant local governments greater autonomy and decision-making authority over their domain.
“The passage of these bills is seen as a significant step towards strengthening the autonomy and decision-making capabilities of local governments in Osun State.
“This landmark legislation marks a significant step towards bolstering local government autonomy, financial independence, and administrative powers, in line with the Supreme Court’s judgment,” the statement partly reads.
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Osun Defender reports that under the administration of former Governor Rauf Aregbesola on March 8, 2016, 36 additional Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs), Administrative Offices, and Area Offices were added to the initial 30 local government areas in the state.
The Supreme Court had in July granted full financial autonomy to the local government areas in the state, failing to recognise the LCDAs.
The court further declared that a state government has no power to appoint a caretaker committee and a local government council is only recognisable with a democratically elected government.
When the new amendment is assented to by Governor Ademola Adeleke, it will grant the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), the powers to conduct elections in only the 30 traditional local government areas of the state.
Elections into the council areas in Osun will be held on February 25, 2025.
