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Proposed local government laws

Kartick Chandra Mandal
*** It is, therefore, clear from the definition that LG institutions are self-governed, and their office bearers should have the authority to take political decisions as to plan and implement development initiatives required fortheir constituents. ***
Bangladesh has a long history of local government (LG). Through this article we will try to discuss some of the critical issues pertaining to LG. and finally make a recommendation to the government.
Conceptual framework
Is our local government (LG) self-governed? The answer to this question is obviously known to all of us. The LG institutions, numbering around 6 thousand, are not selfgoverned, rather they are treated as mere extensions and appendages of the national government. This reality fundamentally goes against the very concept of LG as such, and is against the sprit of the Constitution of Bangladesh.
To look into the conceptual issues we may synthesise the definition, the most recognised and widely accepted, given by the United Nation as "the term local self-government refers to political sub-division of a nation or a state which is constituted by law." It is, therefore, clear from the definition that LG institutions are self-governed. and their office bearers should have the authority to take political decisions as to plan and implement development initiatives required for their constituents.
The constitutional provisions
Now we shall analyse the constitutional sprit with regards to LG. Article 59 entrusts the LG institu-
tions with the authority to plan, coordinate and implement development initiatives, and to manage their staff. Article 60 confers on them the authority to prepare budgets of their own as well. Article 9 says the state shall encourage the LGs. These provisions unambiguously uphold the true sense of LG and. thus, it is obligatory for the government to translate these provisions into law.
Being constitutional entities, they should not be made subservient to the national government. They must have such autonomy as enjoyed by other constitutional entities, such as Public Service Commission (PSC), University Grants Commission (UGC), etc. Regrettably, however, the legal frameworks, thanks to the colonial legacy, make the institutions dependent on the national government These colonial relics, in the guise of modern bureaucratic machinery, denies their constituents to be served with local human, physical, financial and social capital.
The reality
The entire LG system is historically weak, and has been made purposefully fragile. Though there are social, political and administrative reasons, nevertheless, the bureaucracy is the major deterrent in strengthening these institutions. The bureaucracy always likes to create "a sense of fear" in the minds of the elected representatives.
I am just furnishing one example to delineate the sense of fear that prevails in the minds of LG representatives. In the month of November, while I was talking with a Union Parishad chairman at Dharmapasha, under Netrokona, about nonformation of the standing committees, the Chairman said "shaes shamayae kore abar DCr thela khai" (forming the committees at the fag end of the term, I may be brought to book by the DC (Deputy Commissioner). The implication of
the sentence is very far-reaching and eye opening, therefore, to be rethought in the light of the constitutional sprit in the first place.
Recent steps of the government
The government is now revising existing laws in the light of the recommendations put forward by a committee set up by it. The government should examine the proposed laws through the lens of the conceptual framework, and vis-^-vis the constitution, in order to create an enabling environment so that LG institutions function as selfgoverned entities, free from the executive. To work in that environment, these entities need a guardian institution, working as a buffer institution between the government and these entities.
Local government commission
In formulating a commission to oversight LG institutions, two issues are critically important; (1) eligibility and selection of members and (2) the power and authority to be vested in the commission. Eligibility should be broad-based and inclusive. Putting bureaucrats at the helm will be like "pouring old wine into a new bottle," and providing a wider scope for giving the
crude thelas.
To herald meaningful change and an era of autonomy, issues such as taking oath, dissolving the elected body and suspending the representatives, and preparing the budget must lie with the commission. To establish good governance, paving the way to attain the
targets of PRSP and MDGs, the government should have a decentralisation policy devolving power, resources and authority to the LGs, and the commission should have the authority to ensure its implementation.
Public opinion seeking
The government is finalising the process of formulating the "The Local Government Commission 2008." Since strengthening the LG system, and the formation of a commission, is a two-decade long demand from the concerned quarters, the government should go for seeking public opinion and consult with the relevant stakeholders including the civil society as is done in case of right to information act. And that would be the best rewards for the framers of the Constitution, in this month of liberation and independence.
Kartick Ch Mandal works with MJF as Coordinator (Governance).