Guyanese To Vote In Long-delayed Local Government Elections In March 2016

GEORGETOWN, Guyana CMC – The Guyana government, last week Friday, announced that the long-delayed Local Government elections will be held on March 18, next year.

The Local Government elections were last held in 1994, when the now opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) won the polls, and Communities Minister, Ronald Bulkan, said, that the democratic renewal of local government organs is long overdue.

“Elections are important, because they are a democratic constitutional right. They are essential, because the entire local government system is currently rotten and must be rehabilitated and made fully functional,” he said, adding, that “local government is about handing decision-making power to the people, to enable them to efficiently and effectively manage their communities.

“With these facts in mind, I am pleased to inform you that local government elections will be conducted on March 18, 2016,” he said, noting, that a functioning local government system is a fundamental aspect of democratic governance.

“It is important, because it deals with people’s lives in their communities. Strong local government is at the heart of national development, because who wields decision-making power at the municipal and neighbourhood levels, directly determine and decide where, and how, your tax dollars will be used to develop individual communities and, ultimately, the nation.

“Development at every level depends on a strong system of good, democratic, effective and efficient local governance,” Bulkan added.

Many efforts to hold the elections, over the past few years, had been stalled for various reasons, resulting in several Western countries, like the United States, Canada and Britain, publicly expressing their displeasure at the failure to stage the polls.

Bulkan said, that local governments are mandated, by law, to provide many essential services, such as, improving living conditions, creating jobs in the various local areas, maintaining roads, bridges and other important infrastructure, garbage collection, cleaning of drains, promoting a healthy environment and encouraging citizen involvement in their communities.

“As Guyanese who have been living without a functioning local government system, we can all attest to the necessity of restoring and repairing the dysfunctional system which currently exists, since we have experienced the results of the collapse of local government systems,” he added.

He said, government at the grassroots level was embedded in Guyana’s system of political administration in 1980, when the Local Democratic Organs Bill was passed in the National Assembly.

“This system of grassroots-democracy was therefore bequeathed to us since 1980, but was, unfortunately, never properly implemented as it was intended to be. Today we have the opportunity to transform Guyana, by following the letter and spirit of the Constitution,” he said, adding, “when we elect new local leaders on March 18, 2016, we will be making a break with the ways of the past; the new leaders will not just replace the old ones.

“The new, democratically elected officials will be empowered, according to law, and they will be expected to perform their decision-making roles, according to law. They will not be subject to domination and control by central government.”

He said, the new elected local leaders will also have powers to make decisions that affect citizens living within the respective municipalities and Neighbourhood Democratic Councils and that “it is therefore important that each eligible voter casts a ballot, according to his or her conscience.

“If you do not vote, other people will choose local government officials without your input,” he added.