| By Leonard Gildarie This past week, across the country, scores of individuals, groups and political parties,Jerseys NFL Cheap, submitted names to become candidates for the upcoming Local Government Elections (LGE). They are scheduled for March 18th.Leonard GildarieLate last year, I spoke of the importance of local government. It is a fact that a number of foreign donors, including the ABC countries, have been clamouring…correction – insisting – that LGE be held soonest.The reasons are simple. The local NDCs and Town Councils are the ones that are supposed to carry out maintenance and garbage collection and ensure key projects are being carried out. The structure in the last two decades fell to a sorry state, where the remnants of the NDCs and Town Councils were mainly political persons who bided their time, staying around and doing little.There was little imagination…little initiative taken to lift communities out of their dismal existence. Few successes were recorded in raising rates and taxes or even attempting to find other ways for badly-needed revenues. We can talk about community centres that went to the dogs or monies that were returned because projects were not completed in time. We can also talk about monies being stolen from NDCs.Local government is the critical component of the entire governing structure in Guyana.Central government can talk all it wants – allocate all the monies it has but without a proper local government mechanism in place, very little can be done.The situation over the last two decades has kept this country back.NDCs and Town Councils – a classic example is Georgetown – stagnated because of a lack of funds, mismanagement and corruption.I would like to stop here and talk a little about corruption.Guyana is a “funny” place. It is a small business world. Everybody knows who to go to at Customs to clear a container. Everybody knows who to call for a driver’s licence.I can go on and on. The point is that Guyana is a small place and it becomes almost common knowledge – if you are listening – whose hands are in the cookie jar or are outstretched.Under new local government laws in place, NDCs and Town Councils will have the liberty of raising taxes. I suggest that strict attention be paid to enforcement.We have a situation now that will be hard to control unless strong, unpopular steps are taken. It will need strong leaders at the helm.I am talking, of course, of non-compliance when it comes to paying rates and taxes, and our commitments. Nobody likes taxes. I hate it even more when I know that I am asked to pay but my neighbour is blatantly beating the system. Why am I paying?So we are heading to the polls to choose leaders – councilors and Chairmen and Chairpersons.We want our drains cleaned. We want better roads. We want street lights. We want zoning. The latter will become a critical issue in coming years when citizens start demanding an improved quality of life. We have to move away from the past practice of issuing licences for rum shops, auto body workshops, cement blocks facilities and even taxi services. There are so many instances that are known.The only time that residents know that a business is coming is when construction starts and the business is opened. Many times, residents are complaining of being told that the application was published in the Official Gazette in accordance to the law. This is one area I would love to see changes.Many citizens are still without internet.The Official Gazette is published online and available at the Parliament Building.Many citizens would tell you that they never heard about it.We may have to think of another forum. The Guyana Chronicle or Kaieteur News, or someplace where citizens can know of the transactions taking place in the country.So yes, there are many issues that need addressing in our communities.NDCs and Town Councils will have to think outside of the box when it comes to running the villages and towns.We have to create employment, raise money, establish forums and establish places that will create avenues for citizens to live a good life in Guyana. Places where our young people can indulge in activities that are developmental and not detrimental.I have been hearing of this good life, and it has been grabbing me. I want a good life for myself and family. So too should all Guyanese.Like I mentioned last year, there are so many examples of best practices in the developed world that we can draw on. Communities are well thought-out, planned and then constructed to the finest of details. Playgrounds, police station, fire stations, library, maintenance, the list goes on.But for me one of the most important elements in any community will have to be job creation. For too long, we had persons in place who thought their only responsibilities were to collect garbage and rates and taxes. If you were lucky, the drains were cleaned. The reality is that many NDCs were handed new housing schemes without any measures in place to increase revenues. Revenues are critical to the functioning of any community.Essential services like garbage collection, drains being cleared, police patrols, clean schools and even designated areas for parking are all necessities for the better life we all want; that we yearn for.Poor rates and taxes collection, lazy and corrupt NDC officials and even poorer decisions of allowing rum shops and other glaring infringements, have set the stage for what has been described as a ‘wild west’ situation.The power of strong communities in the US lies in the leadership of local representatives. The battle to be elected in the US is tougher than any campaign I have seen elsewhere. It appears Americans, on the whole, vote for issues rather than what Mommy and Daddy voted for. Issues like abortion, gun laws, medical insurance, minimum wage, same-sex marriage, interest rates…these are the bread and butter issues that matter.Today, the new Government is talking about doing away with policies that concentrate on just putting in infrastructure and offering a house lot. The new schemes must include playgrounds and zones for industrial and commercial operations for job creation.As we ready ourselves for local government elections in the coming months, there are several issues that need to be considered. We must carefully choose our leaders. Don’t choose them for being part of a party we follow. They must be qualified; must be willing to fight; to represent us – to think for us.What kind of neighbourhood do we want to live in? Can we demand more from our representatives? How do we hold them more accountable when they abuse our assets such as tractors and trailers?The choice is ours come March 18th. |
