Akwa Ibom LG Council Chairman’s sordid case file

The comatose state of the Local Government system in Nigeria is currently on the front burner in Akwa Ibom State, with Mkpat Enin Local Government Council as case study.

The situation is dire, somewhat hopeless and unarguably embarrassing.

The malaise manifests in macro and micro forms. Macro malaise under the guise of the state government starving the Local Government Council System of statutory funds and installation of a repulsive political leadership emergence process via party nomination and local government elections clearly adjudged as charades.

Micro malaise in the form of glaring lack of transparency and accountability as allegedly orchestrated by the council helmsman, Mr. Aniekpeno Ekpo.

The essence of having the local government as a third tier of government to bring democracy closer to the people appears defeated.

Mkpat Enin Local Government Council – like every other Local Government Council in the state and country – is cowering under the burden of glaring maladministration.

Sane minds wrench when a Local Government Council Chairman appears before a Committee of the State Legislature to boldly affirm some allegations levelled against him by councillors.

Over the weekend, the Council Chairman appeared before the Akwa Ibom House of Assembly Committee on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs sequel to a petition against him by Councillors and the Council Secretary.

The allegations as listed in the petition include: worrisome rise in insecurity in Mkpat Enin Local Government Area, misappropriation of internally generated Revenue of the Council, general Abuse of Office and Misappropriation of Public Funds, auctioning of council grader, auctioning of generating set, and unsolicited borrowing in the name of council funds.

The Council Chairman admitted to flouting the Local Government Administration Law by borrowing on behalf of the council without the approval of the Governor and the Council. The said loan amounting to 3 Million Naira is alleged to have been paid into a private bank account.

The Chairman also admitted that Internally Generated Revenue was paid into personal bank account, not the Council account as specified by the Law.

Bank account statements were tendered to the committee by the spokesperson of the Councillors and Deputy Chief whip of Mkpat Enin Legislature, Barrister Elijah Udosen.

For emphasis, the tendered bank tellers include ones clearly showing the Council Chairman’s name as recipient of the IGR.

Point of Sales (POS) receipts were also tendered.

On missing Grader in the Council, he said it was taken out for repairs, but confessed to the committee in the presence of the media and members of the public that the decision was taken by him without the consent or knowledge of other officials of the council.

Another allegation is the auctioning of a generating set belonging to the council without the consent of members of the council. He replied saying he would produce the said generating set.

On insecurity in the area, the councillors alleged that the chairman only convened a security meeting at one instance.

They also alleged that there is no synergy between the council and security agencies.

The councillors also stated that the Divisional Police Officer of the area can confirm that several letters sent by him to the council soliciting for support for the Police have never been replied by the chairman. On this, the chairman said he has tried his utmost best in his capacity as Chief Security Officer of the council to boost security of lives and properties.

The council chairman looked unperturbed, but his defence on the day apparently betrayed his confident pose.

A late attempt by the Leader of the Mkpat Enin Legislative Council, Oscar Smith Peter, representing Ikpa Ibom Ward 2, to spot loopholes in the petition failed.

He questioned the councillors eligibility to use the legislative council’s letter headed paper in writing the petition sent to the House of Assembly.

According to him, the councillors should have used their personal letter headed papers.

He was promptly corrected by the committee as he was told that his colleagues, as bonafide members of the legislative council, have the right to use the letter headed paper in formal communication.

Peter was asked to apologize to his colleagues having also questioned why they did not serve the Council chairman what he termed as ‘impeachment notice’ before taking the matter to the House of Assembly.

He was told by the committee that the matter at hand is an investigative hearing into alleged offences, not an impeachment session.

The Committee later adjourned sitting with an invitation of the Head of Mkpat Enin Local Government Service, Director of Finance, Works and Administration to appear before it on 27th November, 2021.

The crux of the problem is fiscal. The  opaque system in which state governors disburse Local Government allocations in percentages way below the original sum approved by the federal government is a bad precedent.

Our council funds are not properly accounted for. Local Government Council Chairmen are emulating the precedent set by Governors.

The skewed system is lubricating a vicious cycle which is detrimental to the governed.