Guidelines to Reduce Vulnerabilities Created by Cash Withdrawals from Local Government Funds throughout Nigeria (Initiated by The Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit, NFIU)
Policy Details
LG allocations paid into the SJLGA should go straight into the respective Local council bank accounts
Local government allocation or fund cannot be withdrawn until it is paid into Local government bank account
LGs are limited to N500,000 cash transactions daily
Expenses or transactions beyond N500,000 must be undertaken using e-transfers and cheques
Totake effect on June1, 2019
Implications
The Policy favours LGs financial Autonomy
The policy bar banks, financial institutions, public officers and other stakeholders from tampering with local government statutory allocations.
Sates particularly would no longer be able to tamper with LG funds
The policy restores LGs as third tier of government
The policy restores full mandate of the operations of State/Local Government Joint Accounts to be used solely for the distribution of funds directly to the accounts of the local governments not for withdrawals and payment as currently being done by state governors
CONTENTION
Section 162: (6) Each State shall maintain a special account to be called “State Joint Local Government Account” into which shall be paid all allocations to the Local Government Councils of the State from the Federation Account and from the Government of the State.
(8) The amount standing to the credit of Local Government Councils of a State shall be distributed among the Local Government Councils of that State on such terms and in such manner as may be prescribed by the House of Assembly of the State.