What Next for Lagos LCDAs with Supreme Court verdict on LGA funding?

Nigeria’s Supreme Court on Thursday issued a landmark ruling mandating the Federal Government to pay local government funds directly to the accounts of the Local Government Areas domiciled in the Central Bank of Nigeria.

While this spells a new lease of life for the LGAs, in states like Lagos with Local Council Development Areas (LCDA), which were created outside the rims of Nigeria’s constitution, the case becomes a bit messier. These LCDAs have existed for over two decades and may not be able to access any funding from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) as they do not run accounts at the CBN.  

The court also held that only Local Government Areas with elected officials and not appointees are to be funded, bringing to an end the reign of Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC) across Nigerian states. 

The JAAC was a central committee that was set up to receive and disburse funds accruing to Local Government within the States and was managed by the Local Government Area…