The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Olayemi Cardoso to disclose whether the bank has begun direct disbursements of allocations from the Federation Account to Nigeria’s 774 local government councils. SERAP further demanded that the CBN publish the exact amounts sent to each council, if any, including any disbursements made specifically to local councils in Rivers State, along with the reasons for such actions.
In a Freedom of Information request dated May 10, 2025, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, emphasized that the CBN must uphold the public interest and ensure compliance with a landmark Supreme Court ruling from July 2023. That ruling mandates that all local government allocations be paid directly to democratically elected councils, removing any control from governors or state authorities.
SERAP stressed that the CBN bears a constitutional and statutory duty to protect the integrity of the Federation Account and to ensure that public funds are disbursed properly across the three tiers of government. The group said the CBN must also prevent any part of Nigeria from being governed contrary to the Constitution or by unauthorized entities.
