By: Kebba AF Touray
The Select Committee of the National Assembly on Regional Government has recommended the need for the provision of vehicles for district chiefs, to ease their movement in performing their errands.
It further recommended the Ministry to re-evaluate properties for the maximization of revenue for Councils.
The committee made these recommendations in its report on its oversight visit to the offices of the Lands Ministry and the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), tabled before Members by the Chairperson of the Committee, Hon. Sulayman Jammeh, member for Bundung.
Laying the said report, Hon. Jammeh said the committee recommended the provision of vehicles for district chiefs to ease their movement, as they are constrained with lack of mobility which seriously affects their movement in carrying out their errands. He said the committee also recommended that the Lands Ministry evaluate properties for the maximization of revenue for Councils, and for the Lands Ministry to investigate the management and operation of real estate agencies. He informed members that the committee conducted the oversight visit to the said entities because the regional government authorities are crucial in re-echoing the will and wishes of the people.
“The objectives of the visit include interaction with officials of the Lands Ministry and regional government with the regions and traditional rulers, on their mode of operations, to assess the number and types of projects initiated by the Lands Ministry in each region, and to identify the challenges and proffer a possible way forward for effective service delivery,” he said.
He said the Committee visited Kerewan Area Council, the Department of Community Development, and Kuntaur Area Council and also met with the Mayor and Councillors of Banjul City Council, Janjanbureh Area Council, Basse Area Council, Mansa Konko Area Council, Chiefs and IEC officials. He outlined that during their visit to these entities, they observed that these institutions are confronted with numerous challenges such as inadequate financial, technical, human and material resources, with key relevant positions vacant. He also said that some of the Councils visited lack resources to be able to tackle the issue of waste attributable to cost of waste trucks.
“Some councils are faced with challenges such as non-compliance by the central government to pay 25 per cent subvention as established by the local government act 2002. Councils in some situations are not informed about projects implemented in their areas by the Office of Governors, and inadequate staff training and lack of capacity building opportunities,” he outlined.
He also outlined that the Councils are faced with mobility, unrevised local government legal instruments, and inadequate budgetary allocations among other challenges, adding that some of the achievements registered by the entities visited include provision of support to women and youth development in training on food processing, provision of infrastructural facilities such as water projects and solar lightning facilities among other achievements.
On the IEC, he said the Electoral Commission is challenged with staff accommodation; mobility challenges to run its operations; inadequate storage facilities across regions; and election kits and drums left lying outside in the open and exposed to both heat and moisture.
“The IEC is also constrained with limited civic education to the electorate in the regions; insufficient capacity building for staff; stagnant growth in IEC (human growth in terms of expansion) and insufficient budgetary constraints,” Hon. Jammeh said, explicating that the other recommendations of the committee is for Government to provide salaries for court members and badge messengers, and to provide uniforms and mobility for badge messengers.
“The committee further recommended for Chiefs and court members to be trained for better decision making during proceedings, and provide mobility for chiefs to visit their respective areas and run official errands,’’ he said.
He added that Government and the Lands Ministry should revisit the obsolete Land Act and Land Banking Act.
Lawmakers weighed in on the report and called for the need to support the chiefs and badge messengers to ensure the smooth execution of their work, by easing their movement. The legislators also stated that the district tribunal court members need to be given monthly salaries in lieu of allowances. The lawmakers also called for the need for government to look into the possibility of giving some revenue generated from the Senegambia Bridge to the Mansa Konko Area council, to support the council in the execution of its development projects, as well as help to deliver services to the electorate in their jurisdiction.
After a lengthy debate on the report, members of the national assembly adopted the report of the regional government committee, with amendments that the committee develop resolutions on the challenges facing area councils, and to stipulate the timelines for these resolutions.
