By Mutalubi Ojo Adebayo
This is my rejoinder to Professor Paul Ananabas in 2022, the Supreme Court in its judgement delivered yesterday validated and agreed with the learned Silky Professor.
I had tendered unreserved apologies to the learned Silk in 2022 when he took exception to the language I used in the piece under reference. I have also sent him a private apologies today with a promise by me to do another one in public because my piece then was also equally widely circulated.
Learned Silky Professor , I hereby offer my sincere apologies publicly Sir.
Let it be known by all and sundry that the Supreme Court is both a court of justice and a policy court.
For those crticising and condemning the judgement of the Supreme Court as being anti- federalism, I beg to disagree even though I also once wrote an article in that regard too which is posted hereunder.
Alexander Pope said-
For forms of Government, let the fools contest. What is best administered is the best.
The concept of federalism is not of universal application and can never be pigeonhole into a sole compartment. It can be adapted to meet homegrown democracy. Nothing is cast in stone.
We have even passed that stage now because the apex court has spoken, loudly and clearly for that matter. That decision remains the law for now until the Supreme Court reverses itself in the future.
Until then, any aggrieved Governor or persons can file appeal to our Father who hath in heaven if they are ready to meet him now. And since, it is not yet my time, I will abide faithfully with the decision of the Supreme Court.
My rejoinder to Professor Paul Ananaba, SAN on 25th October, 2022.
Good morning Maupe and Chamberlain. Thank you so much for the great non-partisan and unbiased professional works which are in tandem with the world’s best practice that you Guys at the Channels TV are doing to deepen our constitutional democracy and the development of this country.
Your impactful contributions are unlike those of some media houses that are even more political, partisan and biased than the politicians themselves.
Kudos.
I just watched and listened to Professor Ananabas, SAN on your medium now( a repeat broadcast of Sunrise Daily). All that he said were just not a gross misconception of the law but he indeed turned the law on its head with respect to the subject of the discourse.
We are talking of the local government autonomy in Nigeria because that phrase strayed and or was smuggled into the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria when it was not meant to be there in the first instance at all. It was a very wrong and misplaced insertion in the Constitution by those who hurriedly prepared and drafted the Constitution.
There is nothing like Local Government autonomy in any federalism because the component units of a federation are just 2(two) namely- (1) the Central or the National Government which we called the Federal Government in Nigeria.
In a true federalism, the appropriate name is the National Government and (2) The State Governments and or the regional governments as the case may be.
Indeed, it is the federating units or the component units in the country or in the federation that agree to come together to form a union and thus create a government at the Centre or at the National level.
Suffice to say that in any Federation, there are just 2(two) tiers or levels of government and they are just the National/Central/ Federal Government and the State Governments.
There is nothing known as the third tier of government and there cannot be any 3rd tier or level of government known as the local government because the local government are just or mere creation of the state government for ease of governance. They merely exist at the pleasure of the state government.
Another contraption in our Constitution is the recognition given by the Constitution to the local governments which are absolutely unnecessary and anti- federalism.
State Governments have absolute and exclusive rights and prerogative to create as many local governments as they may deem fit to have within their respective states without any recourse at all to the Federal or Central or National Government.
It is the state government who is entitled and has the responsibility exclusive responsibility to administer , run and manage those local governments as they like.
I am ready to make myself available to do a further conversation on this issue which is basically the issue of federalism and not an issue of constitutionalism.
Thank you.
25th October,2022
JCI Senator Mutalubi Ojo Adebayo,
Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice,
Oyo State of Nigeria (2011 -2015)
Email- adebayoojo90@gmail.com
