Administrative Abuses Affecting Public Accountability in Local Government Administration in Borno State, Nigeria

Abstract

Borno State Local Government Councils since 1976 reforms have acquired renewed significance as the third tier of government in order to effectively manage the rural communities. By so doing it is expected that socio- economic development at the grassroots will be enhanced so as to serve the community better. However, after forty  (40) years, there are still reported cases of non-performance by local government councils, which are alleged to be centers for sharing money. This  paper  therefore, assesses the reasons why public accountability still remains a problem in local governance in Borno State inspite of the accountability checks introduced into the system.  The paper found out that  the administrative abuses affecting public  accountability in local government administration ranges from embezzlement of public funds, inflation of contracts, ghost workers on the payroll, extra budgetary expenditure, and refusal to follow due process, among others. The findings further revealed that State-Local Government Relations in Borno State are characterized by master-servant relations, political victimization, unhealthy operation of joint account, wrongful discipline and transfer. The policy implication is that local government in Borno State could best be described as local administration and not local government. Therefore, the study recommends among others that people should establish independent people’s organizations that are genuinely grassroots, democratically administered and self-reliant to enforce accountability in the system.

Keywords: Administrative Abuses, Public Accountability, Local Government, Administration