By Mephy James
A prominent politician in the South East Nigeria and member of the Governing Board of the North East Development Commission,(NEDC), Rt. Hon. Sam Onuigbo has advised Nigerians to hold their governors and local government chairmen accountable in order to ensure development reach every nook and cranny of the country.
Onuigbo who gained prominence for sponsoring the Climate Change Act 2021, and one of the politicians who advocated for local government autonomy in Nigeria says the removal of fuel subsidy has made more money available in the states and local governments stressing that citizens should hold their governors and local government chairmen accountable.
In May 2023, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced the removal of fuel subsidy which saw a sharp increase in the prices of goods and services across the country. However, more allocation has since been going to the going to the second and third tier of government
Speaking with journalists during the 2025 South East Zonal Management Summit organised by the Nigerian Institute of Management in Umuahia Abia State, Rt. Hon. Sam Onuigbo urged the governors and local government chairmen in the country to demonstrate full transparent in the management and utilisation of allocation they are getting from the Federation Account.
In his words: “All we have to pray and ask for is a lot of transparency on the side of those who are in leadership. The governors are getting money, more than three times of what they got when I was the Commissioner for Finance; the local government is also getting a lot of money as a result of removal of subsidy. So it is up to us now to hold these people to account and make sure that they support Mr. President in the direction he’s moving the economy”
The former federal lawmaker who believes President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is on the right track with his economic policy said all stakeholders and indeed every citizen should join hands to ensure the success of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the present administration.
It would be recalled that Rt.Hon. Onuigbo was the first Representative from his constituency to be re-elected. He sponsored motions and bills that have impacted the lives of not only his constituents, but also Nigerians at large.
In 2019, he was elected to the Board of Global Legislators for a Balanced Environment (GLOBE) International, as the Vice-President Africa (the first Nigerian to be so recognised).
Onuigbo was also the President of GLOBE Nigeria, after serving as its Vice-President from 2016-2019. He was the Chairman of Climate Parliament, Nigeria.
