Osun Assembly passes bills into law to strengthen local government autonomy

By Jeleel Olawale

In a move to bolster local government autonomy, the Osun State House of Assembly on Tuesday, passed two crucial bills into law, the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (Amendment 1) Bill, 2024 and the Osun State Local Government Areas (Creation & Administration) (Amendment 7) Bill, 2024.

The key objectives of these bills are to align the state’s legislation with the recent Supreme Court judgement that upheld the independence of local governments.

The Osun State Independent Electoral Commission Bill seeks to regulate the state’s electoral body to conduct elections in the recognised 30 local government areas.

It also empowers the elected local government chairmen to appoint chief administrators into the Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) and the six area councils within their respective jurisdictions.

Furthermore, the Local Government Creation and Administration Bill provides the elected local government chairmen with the authority to make appointments that will enable them to effectively discharge their duties.

The chief administrators appointed to the LCDAs and area councils will work closely with the chairmen and report back to them.

The passage of these bills is seen as a significant step towards strengthening the autonomy and decision-making capabilities of local governments in Osun State.

The legislation will now be sent to the state’s executive governor for assent.

This move aligns with the recent Supreme Court judgement that upheld the constitutional provisions for local government autonomy, granting them more financial and administrative independence from state governments.