A former Secretary of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in Kaduna State, Kabiru Jarimi, has accused ex-governor Nasir El-Rufai of diverting funds meant for local governments during his tenure.
This accusation comes after El-Rufai recently alleged that his successor, Governor Uba Sani, was using local government allocations to purchase properties abroad, including in Seychelles, South Africa, and the UK.
El-Rufai claimed that no local government in Kaduna currently receives more than N50 million monthly, alleging that the funds are immediately converted to dollars and used for property investments overseas.
However, Jarimi dismissed these claims, saying that local government funds were regularly deducted under El-Rufai’s administration for various reasons without proper explanations.
According to Jarimi, deductions were often made from the councils’ allocations, affecting mainly Southern Kaduna local government areas.
He said they never received their full allocations and were forced to manage inadequate funds after salaries were paid.
Jarimi described the situation as frustrating, revealing that he even considered resigning due to the lack of resources for running local government operations.
He further claimed that El-Rufai justified the deductions by saying they were meant to pay workers’ salaries.
However, Jarimi alleged that other policies were also introduced, which further drained local government funds.
He pointed to the establishment of agencies like the Kaduna Capital Territory Authority, Zaria Metropolitan Authority, and Kafanchan Municipal Authority, which he said were used to reduce the allocations meant for local governments.
Jarimi explained that salaries were split between the capital territories and surrounding local governments, leaving the local governments with insufficient resources.
He added that deductions were also made in the name of sanitation, with local governments required to send funds to the Kaduna Capital Territory Authority every month.
The former ALGON scribe challenged El-Rufai to explain what happened to the deducted funds, particularly those meant for security and riot damage.
He said local governments contributed to these funds but never saw any benefits or clear reports on how the money was spent.
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