LCDAs to Collect IGR as LGs Disagree in Ondo – Is Governor Ayedatiwa to Blame?
It was a moment of celebration on July 10, 2024, when His Excellency, Governor Lucky Orimisan Ayedatiwa, inaugurated the Transition Committees to oversee the affairs of the 18 Local Governments (LGs) and 33 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in Ondo State. The event saw the appointment of some prominent party members to manage the newly constituted administrative units.
However, on January 18, 2025, the Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission (ODIEC) conducted elections across the 18 Local Government Areas of the state, resulting in the emergence of 18 elected Chairmen and 203 Councillors. Notably, the election did not include any of the 33 LCDAs.
The elected Chairmen were subsequently sworn in by Governor Ayedatiwa on February 17, 2025.
Surprisingly, during the swearing-in ceremony, the Governor reiterated that “the LCDAs structure remains intact.” This declaration brought renewed hope and excitement to members of the LCDA committees, who had feared marginalization.
In a twist of events, some members of the LCDAs were seen on the list of newly appointed LG executives. For example, in Ondo West Local Government, Hon. Abimbola Osifeso—formerly the Vice-Chairman of Ondo North LCDA—was appointed Secretary to the Ondo West Local Government Area.
This development has drawn criticism from opposition parties, who described the Governor’s statement as misleading and a potential trigger for conflict within the grassroots governance system.
As of now, in Ondo West Local Government, some LCDAs have set up Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) Committees, which appears to be in competition with the LG authorities over the collection of local revenues.
The situation raises several critical questions:
1. Has the Ondo State House of Assembly officially approved the creation of the 33 LCDAs?
2. Has the Governor followed through with the necessary bureaucratic and legal processes, such as gazetting the LCDAs’ establishment?
3. Where is the funding for the LCDAs coming from?
4. Has any court ruling validated the existence of the LCDAs, thus justifying their rivalry with the duly elected LG executives?
5. Can LCDAs function independently without legislative oversight, unlike the LGs which have elected councillors?
6. Is this a deliberate move by the Governor to stir confusion within the local government system?
The people of Ondo State are calling on Governor Ayedatiwa for a timely and clear resolution to this growing administrative gap. If left unchecked, the overlapping functions and revenue disputes between LGs and LCDAs may lead to tension and inefficiencies in grassroot governance.