Wale Jagun
The Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Local Government and Community Relations on Monday, March 15, 2021, dismissed claims by some Local Government and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in Ikorodu that paucity of funds is responsible for their inability to develop infrastructures in their localities.
The House committee, led by Olayiwola Olawale, the Chairman, and other members including Mr Joseph Kehinde (Alimosho II), Mr Rasheed Makinde (Ifako Ijaiye II), Mr Nureni Akinsanya (Mushin I) and Mr Rauf Age-Sulaimon (Amuwo Odofin II), made this statement during their visit to Ikorodu Local Government, Ikorodu West and Igbogbo/Bayeku LCDA.
They also visited the three other LCDAs in the Division as part of the committee’s oversight function across the 20 Local Governments and 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in Lagos State.
Hon. Olayiwola, dismissing the lamentation of the council chairmen in Ikorodu regarding the claim of no funds, stated that the councils receive enough funds from the federal and state governments.
The lawmaker also said that the councils lack creativity in generating funds to help them develop in terms of infrastructure.
While stating that these councils are surrounded by commercial ventures even though they are agrarian communities, Hon. Olayiwola also added that there is need for the Council Chairmen to be re-oriented and enlightened on how to generate funds.
“I don’t know what they mean by paucity of funds. You and I know that there is enough funding coming from the Federal as well as the state into the local government administration”, the House committee chairman said.
“What I discovered is that they are not putting genuine commitment into the local administration. They are not using their creativity to generate funds.
“Agreed, they are agrarian areas but still, they are surrounded by many commercial ventures that they can tap from.
“The leadership of the council still needs to be re-orientated and enlightened on how to generate funds.”, he said.
A member of the committee, Hon. Kehinde Joseph, said that the claims of paucity of funds is not tenable as the councils have not been able to measure up even with the given allocation.
The lawmaker, representing the Alimosho II, queried what the councils have been using their allocation for even as most of them are yet to make severance payment to the political office holders before end of their tenure.
“Before our visitation, I was one of those people that usually believe that Ikorodu does not have money.
“But, sincerely speaking, their level of allocation is not in commensuration with what they have done looking at what has been happening since most of them became chairmen over three and a half years ago”, Hon. Joseph said.
“If they are saying they don’t have enough funds, are they judiciously spending the ones they have collected”, he asked.
“As you have seen during the questioning, virtually none of them has made severance payment as they have been mandated to do for political office holders before the end of their tenure”, Kehinde said.
The Chairman, Ikorodu Local Government, Hon. Wasiu Adeshinai, in his reaction, stated that the allocation coming into Ikorodu Local Government is being divided into six to cater for the council and five LCDAs carved out of it.
“The challenge so pressing to us is finance. You know the lkorodu local government is splitted into six”, Hon. Adeshina said.
He appealed to the Lagos State Government and the Assembly to come to the aide of the council by assisting it financially.
Princess (Hon) Jumoke Jimbo – Ademehin, Council Chairman, Ikorodu West LCDA, speaking to newsmen, said that efforts are being made to jerk up the revenue of the council in order to meet its infrastructural needs.
She said that the Council is trying all it could to do the ones it can due to its nature even as they need more money to rehabilitate and tar the roads in the communities.
“We are in a move to improve our internally Generated Revenue (IGR). So, that is why we have got vehicles that will go from ward to ward for revenue generation.
“We have five revenue buses now for each of the five wards so as to generate revenue.
“We need more money to tar our roads. We have been doing grading instead.
“We have approached the state government regarding some of these roads and they have come to offer assistance”, she said.
Builder Sesan Daini, Chairman, Igbogbo-Bayeku LCDA, said that areas observed by the lawmakers would be looked into for corrections.
He also assured that the councils would embark on more projects.
Aside the councils’ finances and the impacts they have been making in there respective localities, members of the committee also looked into the facilities provided for the legislative arms in the councils and how the council chairmen are relating with their councilors.
