Lalong Grants Financial Autonomy To Plateau Judiciary, Legislature

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau state has followed in the footsteps of Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto state by granting financial autonomy to the Plateau state Judiciary and Legislature.

Lalong, on Wednesday, signed four bills into law, including the Legislative and Judiciary financial autonomy bill. This was revealed in a statement by Macham Makut, the State Director of Press and Public Affairs, at the New Government House, Little Rayfield, Jos

Governor Simon Lalong becomes the second governor in the Nigeria to assent to the financial autonomy bill, granting financial independence to the state legislature and judicial arms of the state government.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has approved a uniform template for the implementation of the Memorandum of Action on financial autonomy for State legislatures and judiciary.

The forum disclosed this in a communiqué signed by its Chairman and Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, in Abuja, after its 32nd teleconference meeting.

It noted that the template was signed with the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) and the Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria (PASAN) to facilitate the implementation of financial autonomy for the State legislatures and judiciary.

The template was developed following a joint meeting of the State Attorneys General and the Commissioners of Finance held on June 25, on the directive of the Forum.

Recall that Prime Business Africa had last week, reported that Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal of Sokoto State, signed the financial autonomy bill into law.

Tambuwal had said that Governors were not against financial autonomy for the other arms of government but were only opposed to Executive Order 10 signed by the President in May 2020.