SERAP Asks CBN To Confirm Direct Payments To 774 LGs

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, to disclose if the bank has commenced direct disbursement of allocations to the 774 local government councils from the Federation Account.

SERAP, which made the demand in a Freedom of Information request dated May 10, 2025, also demanded the apex bank to publicly publish the amounts, if any, that have been sent directly to each of the councils.

The civil society organisation, in the FIO request signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, also asked Cardoso to immediately disclose whether any direct payments have been made from the Federation Account to local government councils in Rivers State, and to explain the reason behind such payments.

SERAP said its requests were based on a Supreme Court judgment delivered last year, which held that no governor or agency can keep, control, or disburse allocations from the Federation Account intended for local government councils.

The apex court had also ordered that local governments’ allocations be sent directly to only democratically elected LGAs.

The organisation, therefore, maintained that the CBN must act in the public interest to ensure that the 774 councils in the country receive their allocations directly from the Federation Account, as ordered by the Supreme Court.

It further argued that the CBN has a constitutional and statutory duty to protect the allocations in the Federation Account and ensure that public funds disbursed from that Account go directly to each of the three recognised tiers of government.

SERAP also claimed that some state governors were depriving local governments of funds and putting them at risk, despite the Supreme Court’s binding orders.

It insisted that the blatant disregard for the Court’s orders undermines the integrity of the judiciary and poses direct challenge to the rule of law.

The organisation further submitted that the CBN should facilitate compliance with the Supreme Court’s orders because if state governors can ignore the Court, it will undermine the bank’s ability to credibly perform its constitutional and statutory duties.

“We would appreciate it if the recommended measures are implemented within 7 days of receiving and/or publishing this letter. If we do not hear from you by then, SERAP will take appropriate legal action to compel you and the CBN to comply with our request in the public interest.

“States and the Federal Capital Territory continue to undermine and jeopardise local governments, hindering their ability to function effectively as the third tier of government envisioned under the 1999 Nigerian Constitution (as amended).

“The CBN has a constitutional and statutory duty to protect any tier of the federal governance structure from going extinct or being dismantled.

“Local government councils are the rightful owners of their allocations from the Federation Account. States and the Federal Capital Territory no longer have the right to withhold these allocations, as they have persistently failed to use the funds to benefit local government councils and Nigerians.

“The disbursement of local government allocations to the states would adversely impact poor Nigerians and exacerbate poverty.

“The CBN could play a crucial role in revitalising the 774 councils across the country while improving living conditions for residents. The CBN should not permit states to violate the Supreme Court’s judgment or misuse public funds intended for local government councils.

“The CBN has a responsibility to comply with the Nigerian Constitution and the country’s international human rights and anti-corruption obligations in performing its statutory powers and functions.

“Local government councils are entitled to direct payments from the Federation Account, representing the amounts designated for them in that Account. States should not be allowed to collect, receive, spend, or manipulate local government council funds intended for their benefit.

“The Supreme Court declared in its groundbreaking judgment that the Freedom of Information Act applies to public records in the Federation, setting a precedent for transparency and accountability in government funding,” SERAP stated.