President President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday signed into law an Executive Order that will ensure the executive and legislative arms of get government in Nigeria get their finances directly.
The new law tagged Executive Order No. 10 of 2020 for the implementation of Financial Autonomy of State Legislature and State Judiciary Order, 2020, is a brainchild of a Presidential Implementation Committee constituted to come up with strategies and modalities for the implementation of financial autonomy for the States’ Legislature and Judiciary in compliance with section 121(3) of the Constitution.
It is part of efforts at making states’ legislature and judiciary more independent in the country in order to reduce if not remove the influence and powers state governors have over the two arms in their finances.
A statement by the Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice by Dr Umar Jibrilu Gwandu, said the new law will further make the two arms more independent and accountable in line with the tenets of democracy.
“The President signed the Executive Order number 10 into law based on the power vested in him as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria under Section 5 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as Amended), which extends to the execution and maintenance of the Constitution, laws made by the National Assembly (including but not limited to Section 121(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as Amended), which guarantee financial autonomy of the State Legislature and State Judiciary,” Gwandu said.
The Order provides that, “The Accountant-General of the Federation shall by this Order and such any other Orders, Regulations or Guidelines as may be issued by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, authorise the deduction from source in the course of Federation Accounts Allocation from the money allocated to any State of the Federation that fails to release allocation meant for the State Legislature and State Judiciary in line with the financial autonomy guaranteed by Section 121(3) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as Amended)”.
The statement further said that with the new order all states of the federation shall include the allocations of the two Arms of Government in their Appropriation Laws.