Accountable Government

A common feature in daily newspapers is local government councils presenting their budget to the public but what we never see the revenue and expenditure account of the local government. Without accurate financial information, delivered regularly, in an accessible format, citizens lack the knowledge they need to secure their rights and discharge their duties. In this regard, a lack of government accountability and transparency undermines democracy and gives rise to cynicism and mistrust.
This result is reflected in our survey, which revealed deep dissatisfaction among the public with both the unavailability of local government financial information and their usual reluctance to provide such information. Much of this dissatisfaction has to do with issues of trust and a gap between what the public expects and what is actually delivered. {The visit of the elected officials to the EFCC would be dramatically reduced (as it was in Warri South), if unlimited accessibility to financial information is granted to stakeholders in the local government council}

- Hadiza