Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, has signed into law amendments affecting the financial management of the State House of Assembly and Judiciary, despite protests by members of the Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria, JUSUN, who fear the changes could undermine financial autonomy.
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The governor on Monday assented to the Edo House of Assembly Funds Management Bill 2023 and the State Judiciary Financial Autonomy 2023 Amendment Bill at Government House, Benin City.
The signing took place on the same day judicial workers protested at the Edo State House of Assembly complex, blocking its entrance and demanding that lawmakers halt moves to alter the existing financial autonomy framework.
At the signing ceremony, Okpebholo defended the legislation, arguing that the amendments were necessary to address what he described as abuse in the management of capital funds.
The governor said resources earmarked for capital projects should translate into visible development and benefits for residents of the state.
“I am indeed delighted because this has become like a controversial law, I must confess to you,” Okpebholo said.
He maintained that the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary have separate constitutional responsibilities and should operate within their respective spheres.
According to him, the Executive is responsible for administration and implementation, the Legislature performs lawmaking and oversight functions, while the Judiciary interprets the law and adjudicates disputes.
“For me, deviating from these is totally out of the field of play, changing the goal post. I saw danger in it and the way things were going,” the governor said.
Okpebholo expressed concern that money allocated for capital projects was allegedly not translating sufficiently into projects that directly benefited the public.
He praised the House of Assembly for passing the amendments, describing the action as being in the interest of Edo residents.
Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Prince Yekini Idiaye, who presented the bills to the governor, insisted that the new laws did not abolish the financial autonomy of either the Legislature or the Judiciary.
According to him, recurrent expenditure, including salaries and routine operational expenses, will continue to be released directly to the two arms of government.
The major change, he explained, concerns capital expenditure.
“It is the capital part of the funds that has issues. It was badly abused,” Idiaye said.
Under the new arrangement as explained by the Speaker, the Judiciary and House of Assembly will submit proposals for capital projects to the Executive, with the capital component subsequently managed through the state’s appropriation and implementation process.
Idiaye said the arrangement was intended to ensure greater accountability in the execution of capital projects.
“The autonomy is still in place, there is no fear on any side, and the unions should not have any fear,” he said.
He also assured workers that salaries and recurrent expenditure would not be affected.
“I believe they have not been properly briefed, but the autonomy is still in order and the workers’ salaries are not touched,” the Speaker added.
JUSUN, however, has rejected assurances that the amendments leave financial autonomy substantially intact.
Members of the union stormed the House of Assembly earlier on Monday, displaying placards and demanding that lawmakers abandon the legislation.
Edo JUSUN Chairman, Charles Orien, said judicial workers were concerned that changing the existing arrangement could effectively return financial control over the Judiciary to the Executive.
The union maintained that judicial workers had fought for years to achieve financial autonomy and would resist measures capable of eroding it.
JUSUN also rejected the distinction between repealing and amending the existing laws, arguing that what mattered was the practical effect of the changes.
The controversy initially arose after bills were introduced at the House of Assembly apparently seeking to repeal the Edo State Judiciary Financial Autonomy Law 2023 and the Edo State House of Assembly Funds Management Law 2023.
The Speaker subsequently said the reference to repeal was an error and explained that the intention was to amend the laws, particularly provisions concerning capital expenditure.
Despite that clarification, JUSUN continued its opposition and demanded that the existing financial framework be left untouched.
The controversy has also attracted the attention of the Nigerian Bar Association, Benin Branch, which earlier warned against any amendment capable of weakening the independence of the Judiciary and Legislature.
At the centre of the dispute is whether requiring the Judiciary and Legislature to submit capital project proposals to the Executive preserves meaningful financial autonomy or gives the Executive excessive influence over institutions constitutionally expected to operate independently.
The Edo Government maintains that the changes concern accountability for capital projects rather than salaries and recurrent expenditure.
JUSUN, on the other hand, fears that separating capital funds from the direct funding arrangement could weaken the institutional independence financial autonomy is intended to protect.
With Okpebholo’s assent, the controversy has now moved beyond a proposed legislative amendment, as the new framework is set to govern the management of capital expenditure for the affected arms of government.
The dispute may nevertheless continue, with JUSUN and other stakeholders maintaining opposition to any arrangement they believe places the Judiciary’s finances under executive control.
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