local governments


Reasons for local government creation in Nigeria

  1. The wish to bring government nearer to the people
  2. To preserve the unique features of each community
  3. To mobilize the resources of the communities for their development
  4. To stimulate local involvement in politics
  5. To complement the efforts of state and federal governments
  6. To create a communication link between the rural people and the other tiers of government
  7. To create jobs for the jobless
  8. To maintain law and order

Factors that influence local government creation in Nigeria

  1. The population of the people
  2. The geographical  nature of the areas
  3. The economic resources of the areas
  4. The cultural factor
  5. The desire of the people
  6. The political factor
  7. To encourage grass root development

Functions of a local government councilor

  1. He participates in the passage of bye-laws
  2. He is the link between his people and the government
  3. He serves in the council’s committees
  4. He mobilizes his people for the development of his community
  5. He takes part in preparing local government estimates
  6. He controls the executive chairman

Sources of revenue

Sources of revenue can be grouped into two; internal and external sources of revenue.

Internal sources are:

  1. Rate
  2. Community, cattle tax, and development levy
  3. Motor park and market stall fees
  4. Registration of births, marriages, and deaths
  5. Commercial undertakings
  6. Outdoor advertising

External sources are:

  1. Federal account
  2. Allocation from states
  3. Grants from state and federal governments
  4. Fundraising ceremonies
  5. Advances from finance houses

Problems of local governments in Nigeria

  1. They do not have well trained and experienced staffs
  2. There are corruption and misappropriation of funds
  3. They do not have adequate funds
  4. There is a lack of autonomy
  5. There is the presence of tribalism and nepotism
  6. There are constant conflicts among the workers
  7. Some of the workers are politically victimized
  8. Many are too small to survive economically