Political tenure in the Local Government Areas of the elected chairmen and counsellors has been a common phenomenon in Nigeria. This general phenomenon has its beginning from the military era (1966–1998) and has not changed much even with the return of the country to democratic governance in 1999. Nigeria has 36 states and 774 local government areas. Nearly 90% of these local government areas are without chairmen and counsellors. In their place, state governors set up caretaker committees that are now saddled with local governance. This paper provided insights on the causes and effects of this trend on the local government system in particular and grassroots development in general with special reference to the local government areas in Nigeria. In Nigeria, local governments were established to bring grassroots development closer to the people. In order to do this, the constitution and other relevant documents included provisions for the presence of elected officials and important personnel, whose responsibilities include assisting in the management of local government matters. However, it is widely held that in Nigeria, elected officials and important local government employees have not worked together to carry out their responsibilities effectively, depriving the local government of the much-needed development. The study's goals were to evaluate the elected officials' dedication to their positions, their interactions with important local government figures, and the resulting impacts on growth. Both primary and secondary data were gathered for this work using the descriptive research approach, and articles, journals, textbooks, theses, and published and unpublished writings were reviewed for the literature review. The results showed that important officials and elected officials had neglected their responsibilities and engaged in internal strife. These have had a big impact on grassroots development. It was determined that local development objectives would not be met if this practice is not stopped, especially as the nation's democracy grows. According to the study, in order for significant progress to occur at the local level, elected officials and important staff members must grow to trust and appreciate one another. The paper recommended measures that could be used to put a permanent end to this political quagmire, among others that both elected offices and key functionaries must show sufficient commitment to their duties for better decision making and service delivery.