Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of deliberately defying a Supreme Court judgment that mandates the direct allocation of federal funds to local governments, describing the inaction as a breach of constitutional duty.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Atiku warned that by July next year, the Tinubu administration would have spent two full years ignoring the binding court order, transforming what could be viewed as a delay into outright defiance.
“This is not delay. It is defiance,” Atiku stated. “Your refusal to act is a calculated political move—using obedience to the law as a bargaining chip to force opposition governors into the APC and to keep governors within your party firmly under your control.”
The former Vice President argued that the President’s stance reduces constitutional governance to partisan bargaining, emphasising that Supreme Court judgments are not discretionary. “Let us be clear: Supreme Court judgments are final, not optional. Persistently refusing to enforce one is a direct breach of the Constitution and a violation of the oath you swore to Nigerians,” he said.
Atiku highlighted the real-world impact of withholding local government financial autonomy, noting that communities are bearing the brunt of the political standoff. “Roads remain broken, health centres abandoned, salaries unpaid—not by accident, but by choice,” he charged, adding that the President is “not weakening governors, you are crippling communities, stalling development, and deepening poverty at the grassroots.”
The opposition figure called for immediate action, urging the President to instruct the Attorney-General of the Federation to enforce the judgment without further delay. “This situation does not require threats of Executive Orders or political drama. The solution is simple,” Atiku said.
In his closing remarks, Atiku suggested that the continued inaction reveals the administration’s priorities: “Your continued inaction sends a clear message: that political control matters more than constitutional duty, that party dominance matters more than economic justice, and that regime survival outweighs the daily suffering of Nigerians already battered by harsh economic policies.”
He concluded with a warning: “History will not forget this moment. Nigerians will not either.”
The statement adds to mounting criticism of the Tinubu administration’s handling of local government autonomy, an issue that has sparked debate about federalism and the rule of law in Nigeria.
