GOV OTTI DEFENDS ABIA’S LG LAW, SAYS IT SUPPORTS SUPREME COURTS AUTONOMY RULING.

Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has clarified that the recently enacted Abia State Local Government Administration Law aligns with the Supreme Court’s ruling granting financial autonomy to local governments across Nigeria.

Speaking during his monthly media parley, “Governor Otti Speaks with Abians,” on Thursday, the Governor said the law was crafted to support the Supreme Court judgment without disrupting governance and service delivery at the grassroots level.

“The Supreme Court judgment has an intention, and the intention of any law is not to ensure a breakdown of service,” Otti said. “Whatever we did with the law was to ensure that the intended objective of that ruling is achieved. In fact, the Supreme Court actually made a law by that judgment.”

Governor Otti noted that while the judgment mandates local governments to handle core responsibilities such as payment of teachers, primary healthcare services, and local security, practical implementation still requires synergy between the state and council areas.

He argued that leaving local governments entirely on their own would jeopardize effective governance, especially in councils with limited resources.

“It would be irresponsible for sub-national governments to fold their arms,” he said. “A combination of local governments makes up the state, just as states form the federation. We must work together.”

Governor Otti insisted that the new law was designed to make the Supreme Court’s decision implementable without administrative setbacks.

“The law we passed is in no way in conflict with the Supreme Court judgment. What we tried to do is to ensure that it is implementable without creating hitches,” he concluded.