A fresh accountability challenge has emerged for the Oyo State Government as a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) House of Representatives candidate, Comrade Akinloye Olusegun, has demanded a detailed account of federal allocations received by the state’s 33 local government areas over seven years.
Olusegun, who contested the Surulere/Ogo-Oluwa Federal Constituency seat, has approached the Federal Government through his solicitors, Umar and Alofe Chambers, seeking comprehensive records of monthly allocations from May 2019 to October 2026.
The request, contained in a letter dated October 27, 2026, was addressed to the Minister of Finance, who also chairs the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), with the Accountant-General of the Federation specifically listed for attention.
The lawyer handling the request, Ayo Omoleaupen, said the application was made under the Freedom of Information Act, 2011, on behalf of his client, whom he described as an indigene of Oyo State and a stakeholder interested in accountable governance and public finance management.
The solicitors are demanding a month-by-month breakdown of all federal allocations disbursed to each of the 33 local government areas during the period.
Specifically, they want the records to separately identify statutory allocations, Value Added Tax (VAT) proceeds, exchange rate gains or differentials, Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) proceeds and other approved augmentations, excess crude distributions or related payments.
They are also demanding the aggregate amount received collectively by all 33 councils for every month covered by the request.
The letter stated that the information was being sought for civic accountability, public interest research and improved transparency in public finance management, citing Section 14(2)(c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
The solicitors gave the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation seven days from receipt of the application to provide the requested information, in accordance with Section 4 of the Freedom of Information Act.
They also undertook to pay applicable charges for searches, duplication, transcription and certified true copies of relevant documents.
More significantly, the request is expected to precede petitions to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), according to the information accompanying the application.
The move comes amid continuing national debate over the financial autonomy and management of Nigeria’s local governments.
In July 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that federal allocations due to local government councils should be paid directly to them, while declaring unconstitutional the practice of state governments retaining and utilising funds meant for the councils.
The judgment was intended to strengthen the financial independence of the third tier of government and prevent undue interference in the administration of local council funds.
The demand for Oyo’s allocation records could therefore provide an opportunity to examine the flow of federal funds to the state’s councils over an extended period, including the years before and after the landmark Supreme Court judgment.
However, the request itself does not establish that funds were diverted, mismanaged or unlawfully withheld. Any such conclusion would require examination of the official records and evidence of how the allocations were received, administered and spent.
Attention will now be on the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation to respond to the Freedom of Information application and make the requested records available.
For Oyo residents, the central question is straightforward: how much did each of the 33 local governments receive from the Federation Account over the seven-year period, and can the figures be transparently accounted for?
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