The Plateau State House of Assembly has reduced the tenure of elected local government officials in the State from three to two years. The House Committee Chairman on Information, Mr Matthew Kwarpo disclosed this in Jos on Wednesday.
According to Mr Kwarpo, the reduction was in line with the amended Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission (PLASIEC) Law 2024. Kwarpo stated that it was also because of the financial autonomy that was recently granted to local governments in the country.
He added that the lawmakers took the decision after they considered a bill sponsored by Assemblyman, Joseph Gokum (APC/Kanke Constituency) on the amendment of the 2017 Local Government Councils Law.
“Specifically, the clause that was amended was the one that has to do with the tenure of local government elected officials. In the 2017 law, the chairmen, deputy chairmen, and councillors were expected to spend three years in office. But it was amended that the elected officials will spend two years in office.
“Whenever there is a pilot scheme, you take a little time to learn what is new. As legislators, we think that it is wise to start with two years of tenure to see how the financial autonomy granted to local governments in the country will fare.
“When you begin to give four years to someone who is going into a pilot scheme, when there are challenges, you find it difficult to tackle them,” he explained.
According to him, it is the right of the house of assembly to legislate on the laws of the local governments and to carry out oversight functions.
Kwarpo pointed out that the amendment was for the lawmakers to easily carry out oversight functions, and that if there was anything that required amendment, they could be easily addressed.
He assured the people that the reduction was not for their parochial interest but for the good of Plateau.