Agbakoba Slams Governors: “36 States Doing Nothing” — Calls for Power Devolution to Boost Democracy

Former Nigerian Bar Association President, Dr. Olisa Agbakoba, has sharply criticized the 36 state governors and 774 local governments, stating they “don’t do anything” beyond traveling to Abuja to collect stipends monthly. Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme, Agbakoba urged President Bola Tinubu to devolve political authority to states and local governments to enable bottom-up development and ensure Nigerians benefit from democracy’s dividends.

Agbakoba highlighted the overcentralisation of power in the federal government, noting that the Nigerian constitution currently vests 98 legislative powers exclusively at the federal level. He called for a constitutional amendment to create a new legislative list that clearly defines powers for each government tier, preventing overlap and enhancing local governance effectiveness.

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While praising President Tinubu’s move to secure financial autonomy for local governments through the Supreme Court, Agbakoba emphasized the need for further reforms to grant legislative authority to states and local governments to function independently and effectively. He described Nigeria’s current federal structure as “90 percent dysfunctional,” with states and local governments largely dependent on federal allocations and lacking real autonomy or development roles.

Agbakoba’s call for restructuring includes redefining federating units, fiscal federalism, and power rotation to address Nigeria’s diversity and governance challenges more fairly. He envisions decentralisation as the key to unlocking Nigeria’s development potential and improving governance outcomes nationwide