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Momodou
Denmark
11745 Posts |
 Posted - 20 Oct 2007 : 19:24:08
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Bravo To The IEC For Local Govt Elections, But….
By D. A. Jawo
There is absolutely no doubt that all Gambians, apart from the very few who are personally benefiting from the status quo, would welcome the decision by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to set a date for the next local government elections.
Indeed, the time for the elections was well overdue. We can recall that the last local government elections were held in April 2002, and according to the Local Government Act, the elections were due in 2006. However, here we are at the end of 2007 and the old councils (or what still remains of them after several of the elected mayors and councillors have been sacked) are still operating.
Therefore, under the circumstances, by the time the elections are held next year, it would have been almost two years the councils are operating without any new mandate from the people.
Indeed, for most of the councils, such as the Banjul City Council, Kanifing Municipal Council and Brikama Area Council, the regime had even unceremoniously removed their elected mayors/chairmen and replaced them with people of their own choice. The executive has failed to take cognisance of section 23 of the Local Government Act which states: “Where an elected member of a Council ceased to hold office under section 19 to 22 of this Act, a by-election shall be held within two months to elect another person to replace him or her; except that where he or she ceased to hold office within six months before the end of his or her tenure of office, no by-election shall be held.”
In view of such a scenario therefore, one would wonder whether it is indeed really worth anyone’s time and resources to contest for elections for any office in the local government structure when one can easily be removed by the executive.
This is certainly not going to encourage the people to come out to vote when they are convinced that their choices are not respected by those in authority.
It is therefore hard to see how the low turn-out recorded during the last National Assembly elections can be reversed under such a cloudy atmosphere.
We have for instance seen what had been happening at the KMC when the government had to even appoint someone outside the elected councillors as acting mayor, which is certainly against both the letter and spirit of the Local Government Act. We have also seen what has happened to the elected opposition councillor for a ward in Bakau, Ousman Rambo Jatta, who has indeed been detained incommunicado for more than one year. Even a court order for his release has been flouted by the authorities, which I believe is just because he is an opposition councillor.
If this is not jungle form of politics, then one would wonder what else it could be. This type of illegality is certainly not doing any good to the credibility of the type of democracy being practised in this country. It is therefore quite hard to see how the donor partners and other agencies would continue to help this country with its decentralisation process when there is such intolerance of any opposition views and those in authority blatantly refuse to play according to the rules of the game.
Once again, what has been going on is a clear manifestation of the regime’s total disregard for the rights of Gambians to hold views contrary to those of the ruling Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) party, particularly at the local government level. It appears that their only objective is to have only those they can easily control and manipulate at every level of the local government structure, rather than those who represent the genuine wishes and aspirations of the people.
As all Gambians have an equal stake in the development of this country, it is quite unfair to treat those with different political views with such disregard for their basic rights and privileges. This sort of attitude is certainly not helping to steer this country on the right path of peace and prosperity that we all wish it to go. This is no doubt why The Gambia has been placed 22 on the recent African governance index released by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, and with such a trend of gang-ho politics being practised, we are definitely heading for the very bottom of the index.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issue
Issue No. 117/2007, 5 - 7 October, 2007
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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Janyanfara
Tanzania
1350 Posts |
Posted - 23 Oct 2007 : 21:23:28
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Hey do you think some African leaders take the Mo Ibrahim Foundation seriously "Mawdo" Jawo? No they foolishly don't! My friend think if a leader can corruptly earn millions different from his salary in just weeks, what good is the Mo Ibrahim Award to such a baboon?Honestly corruption and power blinds many Africans into forgetting that being an examplary leader, not only would you be seen as trustworthy worldwide but respected for just doing your job.
After all, being a bad/corrupt leader, you either ends up being over thrown or even if you survived till natural death parts you, you leave your family to shoulder the responsibility of your actions which is not even being fair to one's self as maybe some of your family members might be completely innocent.
Anyway some recently have resorts to creating a monarchical type regimes so that when they eventually leave or die, their brothers/ sisters or sons and daughters would succeed them.
We are all closely watching |
Edited by - Janyanfara on 23 Oct 2007 21:27:12 |
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