A Partnership for National Unity column
Local government is about local democracy. Local democracy in Guyana today, however, is now in a state of deep crisis. This is largely as a result of determined actions by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic administration which, in many cases, demolished local democratic organs and degraded the representation of the people.
This denial of citizens’ rights to participate in the management of their communities as part of the governance architecture is a dangerous development and one which results in the imposition of numerous annoyance and aggravation to citizens.
Local problems range from noise nuisance, unnecessary flooding, inefficient collection and disposal of garbage, poorly-maintained streets, parapets and playgrounds and roaming stray animals. The resulting toll on the quality of life is often incalculable.
The Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana provides the solution to these problems. Article 12 states: Local government by freely elected representatives of the people is an integral part of the democratic organization of the State, and Article 71 (1) which reads: Local government is a vital aspect of democracy and shall be organized so as to involve as many people as possible in the task of managing and developing the communities in which they live.
An essential component of both is the holding of periodic elections for the posts of councillors of local democratic organs, namely 10 regional democratic councils (RDCs), 6 municipalities (Georgetown, Linden, New Amsterdam, Rose Hall, Corriverton and Anna Regina) and 65 neighbourhood democratic councils (NDCs). It is well known that elections for the last two named bodies have not been held when and since they were last due in 1997, the consequences of which have a deleterious effect on our towns and communities.
Local government elections which were due in 1997 had to give way to General and Regional Elections which were held in that year. Following those elections the consensus in the National Assembly was that the system of local government needed to be reformed and strengthened. As a consequence of this, new constitutional provisions came into being in 2001 to allow for the following:
Autonomy for local democratic organs (Art. 75);
Fiscal transfers to local democratic organs (Art. 77 A);
Establishment of a Local Government Commission, empowered to deal with “all matters related to the regulation and staffing of local government organs” (Art. 78 A); and
Ensuring that “the electoral system in respect of local democratic organs below the RDCs provide for the involvement and representation of individuals and voluntary groups in addition to political parties” (78 B).
A Joint Task Force was established by then President Jagdeo and then Leader of the Opposition Hugh Desmond Hoyte in December 2001 with a remit to draft legislation to give effect to the new constitutional provisions. The Task Force held consultations countrywide and, in May 2003, submitted its Report which contained five pieces of draft legislation.
The intended reform of the system of local government then became victim of the PPP/C administration’s intransigence and its desire to retain and maintain centralized control. It was able to achieve this by virtue of having a majority in the 8th and 9th Parliaments between 2001 and 2011. Things are different in the 10th parliament.
The first of the five proposed pieces of legislation that became law was the one relating to change in the electoral system. This allowed for individuals and voluntary groups (in addition to political parties) to be eligible as candidates to be councillors of municipalities and NDCs and for the creation of geographic sub-units or constituencies in each.
The Local Authorities (Elections) (Amendment) Act 2009 was enacted on 29th September, 2009. It amended the principal act mainly in:
Section 38 (2) which now reads – Elections shall be held in accordance with a mixed system of proportional representation and first-past-the-post and shall provide for the involvement and representation of individuals and voluntary groups in addition to political parties and there shall be accountability to the electors, and
Section 38 A., sub-section (1) which was inserted and reads –A mixed system of proportional representation and first past the post shall be used within each local authority area and shall provide for 50 percent (sic) of the seats for proportional representation and 50 percent (sic) for constituencies.
Local democracy is a right guaranteed to citizens. It is not a favour to be dispensed with at the whims and fancies of the incumbent administration. The nation expects that local government elections will be held before 1st August 2014. The nation deserves a higher quality of life in its municipalities and rural communities.