The Osun State House of Assembly, located in the South West region of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has approved the Osun State Local Government Accounts Administration Bill, 2025. The legislation introduces a new structure for how Local Government Areas and Area Councils across the state will open, manage, and operate their financial accounts.
Okay News reports that lawmakers described the passage of the bill as a decisive move toward improving transparency and reinforcing financial discipline in the 30 Local Government Areas and additional council territories of the state.
A statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, Olamide Tiamiyu, explained that the bill was crafted “to regulate the opening, management, and operation of Local Government Accounts in accordance with Section 7 (1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), which empowers the State Assembly to legislate on local government finances.”
According to the statement, the legislation aims to strengthen fiscal responsibility, curb mismanagement, and mandate adherence to approved financial protocols within grassroots administrations.
It further disclosed that “under the new framework, signatory authority on all local government accounts will now rest solely with the Directors of Finance and the Directors of Administration and General Services of the local government areas.”
The document also noted that the bill “expressly prohibits political office holders and their appointees from serving as signatories to these accounts — a move widely viewed as an effort to eliminate undue political interference in local government finances.”
Speaking after the bill’s passage, the Speaker of the Assembly, Adewale Egbedun, confirmed that a clean copy of the document would be forwarded to the Governor of Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, for assent.
He emphasized that once enacted, the law would improve financial prudence, strengthen public institutions, and enhance service delivery across communities at the grassroots level.
Earlier on November 10, 2025, the Assembly approved two other major pieces of legislation: the Islamic and Traditional Marriages Registration Bill and the Water Users’ Association Irrigation Bill. According to Tiamiyu, the two bills were considered “landmark” because they sought to reinforce social systems and boost agricultural development across the state.
