Funmi Ogundare
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), is set to deliver the keynote address at the public screening of ‘LG Billions in the Dark’, an investigative documentary on the prolonged local government leadership crisis in Osun State, scheduled to hold on October 29, at the University of Lagos (UNILAG).
The documentary, produced by DevReporting, examines the crisis and its implications for public finance, accountability and service delivery at the grassroots.
The screening will be chaired by the Publisher of Premium Times and Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Dapo Olorunyomi.
Falana will speak on the theme, ‘Accountability, Resources and Citizen Voices: Building Local Governments that Work for the People,’ addressing local government autonomy, public resource management, citizens’ rights and accountability.
The event will also feature a panel discussion involving public officials, civil society leaders, governance experts and academics.
The panellists include Osun State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Dosu Babatunde; Executive Director of the Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED), Zikirullahi Ibrahim; and Executive Director of Spaces for Change, Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri.
Others are Head of Tracka at BudgIT, Joshua Osiyemi; a lecturer in the Department of Political Science at UNILAG, Vera Amaechi; and Senior Multimedia Strategist at DevReporting, Bukola Adebayo.
DevReporting Team Lead, Mojeed Alabi, said the documentary reflected the organisation’s commitment to public-interest journalism and investigating governance issues affecting citizens.
He said the event would also feature the unveiling of the Development Reporting Africa Foundation (DRAF), a non-profit initiative established to strengthen development reporting, promote public engagement and advance accountability across African communities.
A fundraising initiative will be launched to support the foundation’s work.
Alabi added: “DevReporting is developing a civic education and youth engagement programme to take the documentary to tertiary institutions across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.”
The initiative, he noted, will feature campus screenings, training, mentorship and youth-led accountability projects aimed at improving undergraduates’ understanding of local government administration, public finance and citizen participation.
“Local governments are responsible for essential services, including primary healthcare, sanitation and basic infrastructure. However, concerns over financial control, political interference and council autonomy have continued to feature prominently in debates about grassroots governance,” Alabi stated.
The documentary was produced with support from the Royal Norwegian Embassy through the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development.