The duties of Elected Officers and their Relationship with Key Functionaries in Nigerian Local Government: The Implication for Development

Abstract

Local governments in Nigeria were created to bring development closer to the people at the grassroots level. To accomplish this, provisions were made in the constitution and other related documents for the present of elected officers and key functionaries whose duties include cooperation in the administration of the local government affairs. It is generally argued however, that, both elected officers and the key functionaries of the local government areas in Nigeria have failed to cooperate to perform their duties creditably thereby denying the local government the much desired development. This work was undertaken to assess the elected officers’ commitment to their duties as well as their relationship with the key functionaries of the local government and the attendant effects on development. The findings revealed that the elected officers and key functionaries have reneged on their duties and wallowed in internecine feuds. These have significantly affected development at grassroots level. Descriptive research method was used in gathering facts for this work. The work proposed that for meaningful development to take place at grassroots level both elected officers and key functionaries must develop mutual confidence and respect among themselves. It recommended among others that both elected offices and key functionaries must show sufficient commitment to their duties for better decision making and service delivery.