AKSG Have Never Touched LG Funds – Comm. For Education

The Akwa Ibom State government has never fiddled with moneys meant for Local Government Councils - not in the present administration and certainly not in the immediate past administration. This is the assertion of the Akwa Ibom Commissioner for Education, Mr. Aniekan Akpan.

In a media hangout with select members of the Online Press, the Commissioner insisted that the administrations of both the former Governor and the present are not responsible for the failure of some Local Governments to fulfill their financial responsibilities. He stressed that, especially in Akwa Ibom, the Joint State and Local Government Account System cannot be manipulated to deprive any beneficiary of their due. He affirmed emphatically;

“…I must say openly and clearly, having been an elected chairman of a local government in Akwa Ibom; that the past administration and the present have never tampered with local government funds in Akwa Ibom State. And I can say that with authority. None of our governors has ever tampered with local government funds.

I know the Governor we have now; Mr. Udom Emmanuel has no interest in the joint account.”

The Commissioner, who himself had been a two time member of the State House of Assembly and is a past local government chairman of Ukanafun LGA, was reacting to a question posted on Facebook by a member of the over 400,000-follower strong audience who joined the social media convo. 

The State Joint Local Government Account System was created by Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution; established for effective management of revenue accruing to the local government councils from the Federation account.  And in many states, there have been bitter complaints of misuse of the Joint account by the state governments. But about Governor Udom Emmanuel, of Akwa Ibom State, Mr Akpan says;

“He knows how to manage the state, he has the capacity. That’s why even when people are complaining of nonpayment of salaries and all that in other place, the governor here knows how to structure the finances. In spite of dwindling resources, he knows how to get the state going, and not with local government funds. 

Explaining further into how the local government funds are administered in the State, He added;

“The joint account committee system in Akwa Ibom is so structured that payment of staff salary is taken as first line charge; after that, those of primary school teachers. What is left is what the local governments manage. 

It is structured in such a way that the funds that come are pulled together so that staff of local government could be paid; the teachers paid too. Otherwise, some local governments may not be able to manage those funds. 

It is after paying these staff and teachers that some local government councils may be left with nothing. If it weren’t like this, you would probably have been hearing ‘So So Local Government are owing teachers for 8 months; others owing staff 12 months’.

It is not that the State is tampering with their funds; rather, it is an agreement that you must pay your staff first and you must pay teachers; which are your responsibilities.”

By Uduak Umo