Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Monday Ubani, has alleged that persistent hardship and underdevelopment in Nigeria’s rural communities are largely caused by the diversion and withholding of local government allocations by state governments.

Ubani made the assertion while speaking on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, where he argued that the continued suffering at the grassroots level reflects systemic interference with funds constitutionally meant for local councils.

According to the former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Public Interest and Development Law (NBA-SPIDEL), the condition of many rural communities is directly linked to the inability of local governments to independently access and utilise their statutory allocations.

“The suffering experienced in rural communities across Nigeria is not accidental but linked to systemic interference with local government funds,” he stated.

Ubani maintained that local governments remain constitutionally entitled to direct funding, but argued that this principle has been consistently undermined through state-level control and diversion of allocations intended for grassroots development.

He warned that when local government funds are withheld or redirected, community development becomes impossible, resulting in worsening poverty, weak infrastructure and declining living conditions in rural areas.

According to him, the consequence of this practice is evident in the poor state of roads, healthcare facilities, schools and electricity supply across many local communities.

“If the state governors are releasing the money meant for local governments, Nigeria would be a beautiful country,” Ubani said.

The senior lawyer argued that many rural residents are abandoning their communities and relocating to urban centres because governance is no longer felt at the grassroots level.

He stressed that local governments are designed to be the closest tier of government to the people and should ordinarily serve as engines of community development and service delivery.

Ubani, however, lamented that this constitutional closeness has been weakened by what he described as the financial strangulation of local councils by state authorities.

According to him, funds allocated to local governments are often retained, controlled or excessively influenced at the state level, thereby crippling the ability of councils to function independently.

He said the practice has undermined critical services such as primary healthcare delivery, basic education, sanitation and rural infrastructure development.

The Senior Advocate also linked the situation to broader failures in fiscal responsibility and governance coordination among different tiers of government.

He maintained that the absence of genuine local government autonomy has created a dangerous vacuum in grassroots governance, worsening poverty and economic stagnation in rural Nigeria.

“What Nigerians require is just good roads and light, especially in the rural areas,” he said, adding that many of these needs are basic responsibilities local governments should ordinarily be able to provide.

Ubani argued that with proper access to funding, local governments possess the capacity to significantly improve living conditions in their communities.

He also criticised what he described as misplaced governance priorities, insisting that authorities should focus more on rural electrification, road connectivity and community infrastructure instead of concentrating resources mainly on large urban projects.

According to him, decentralised development remains one of the most effective ways to reduce inequality between urban and rural populations.

The senior lawyer further warned that weak local governance structures have broader economic implications for the country.

He stated that neglecting grassroots development weakens rural economies, increases migration pressure on urban centres and contributes to rising unemployment and social instability.

“There is so much money being allocated, but the local governments are not getting it,” he alleged.

Ubani argued that if allocations were properly disbursed and utilised, rural economies would become more productive while pressure on cities would reduce significantly.

He further alleged that excessive state control over local government finances has distorted governance priorities and encouraged dependency and inefficiency at the grassroots.

According to him, Nigeria’s development challenges are not caused by lack of resources but by poor management, weak accountability and ineffective distribution of public funds.

“Nigerians are not lazy,” he said, insisting that citizens simply require enabling infrastructure and functioning governance systems to thrive economically.

Ubani concluded that meaningful national development would remain difficult unless local governments are allowed to operate with greater financial autonomy and accountability.

He maintained that addressing fiscal mismanagement at the grassroots level remains critical to reversing rural hardship, improving service delivery and achieving balanced national development across Nigeria.