From Paul Osuyi, Asaba
A Civil Society Organization (CSO), Social Action, on Thursday passed a damning verdict against local government councils in Delta State, declaring that the third tier of government was under-performing.
Social Action said it’s monitoring of projects by leadership of councils revealed that the collective resources of the councils have not translated into meaningful development in communities.
Addressing journalists in Asaba on behalf of Social Action , Mrs. Augustina Odunna of the Delta State Local Government Budget Advocate Committee, urged councils to operate an open, inclusive and participatory budget process and to lead the way in enthroning transparency and accountability in the utilisation of public resources.
Odunna however stressed the need for local government autonomy, and called on President Bola Tinubu to retransmit the Local Government Autonomy Bill to the 10th National Assembly for passage.
Besides, she demanded that the leadership of councils across the country should as a matter of urgency, carry out needs assessment in communities to address the abject lack of development in far reach areas.
“That the Delta State House of Assembly should as a matter of necessity proceed to enact a law directing all local government in the state to have functional websites and clear communication channels where community people and others can easily access LG fiscal documents to engage the council leadership and to advocate for development projects for their communities,” she added.
Odunna who said her committee was in collaboration with the United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF), noted that the fight for local government autonomy was a collective obligation, insisting achieving it would benefit all citizens.
“We, therefore call on civil society to adopt innovative strategies and persevere until we receive positive response.
“We must recognize the current political and constitutional realities and ask critical questions about the intentions of state governors who oppose local government autonomy,” she said.