by Theophilus Adedokun

Abass Mimiko, former governorship candidate of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) in Ondo state, says Nigerians should demand greater accountability from state governors over the trillions of naira allocated to them.

Speaking during an interview with members of the correspondents’ chapel of the state’s Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) council in Ondo town, Mimiko said citizens should insist on tangible improvements in their lives instead of directing every complaint about poor living conditions at the federal government.

Mimiko added that increasing revenues available to states under the current administration should translate to better roads, healthcare, education, agriculture and other basic services.

He said figures from the office of the accountant-general of the federation show that state governments collectively received about N4.41 trillion through the federation account allocation committee’s (FAAC) disbursements published from January to June, with monthly state allocations ranging from about N651.5 billion to N794 billion.

He said the FAAC record shows that the Ondo state government received about N113.04 billion in the same period, with monthly net allocations ranging from about N16.21 billion to N21.05 billion.

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Mimiko noted that citizens should begin to demand accountability for how governors are using the increased resources.

“I don’t think it is the responsibility of the president to come to a state and say, you have N50 billion, do agriculture. Mend your roads. Do primary healthcare. Make education more affordable for your people,” he said.

“I am of the opinion that people must call out their governors regarding, ‘What are you doing with this huge allocation?’”

He said that the federal structure gave substantial responsibilities and resources to the subnational governments.

He urged Nigerians to extend their demand for accountability to the local government level.

“They say people get the government they deserve. And I think it’s a truism, because you have the ability to choose your leader,” he said.

Mimiko added that vote-selling had weakened the ability of citizens to hold political office holders accountable.

He said Nigerians should reject the mentality of exchanging their votes for immediate financial gratification and instead elect leaders capable of addressing fundamental problems affecting their communities.

“I will tell him, Mr. President, the buck stops at your desk, and you have said that, and you know it. Look for creative ways in making sure the money you are allocating to the states gets properly spent on the people’s affairs,” he said.

“How do you make sure that the states grow food? If you take hunger away from the problem of Nigeria, a lot of things would be easier.

“I’m praying for the day when the average local government will have N500 million in their hands and have a local government chairman that cares about the people. It will be a new Nigeria.”