Gov’t has tangibly demonstrated its commitment to all municipalities

Dear Editor,

On November 19, 2018, Minister of Communities, Hon. Ronald Bulkan in a missive to me announced that Mayors, Deputy Mayors, Town Clerks, Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDC) and Overseers will all receive a stipend come January 2019.

“In keeping with the recommendation of delegates of the eighty-one (81) organs, and central government’s commitment to building the capacity of local leadership, at the request of the ministry, Cabinet has granted approval effective January 2019 for the payment of stipend to Mayors and their deputies, town clerks, NDC chairpersons and overseers,” Minister Bulkan said in his missive.

I’m heartened by this correspondence and I believe this is a mammoth move by the administration, since the largest roadblock to a council’s success is finances.

This correspondence, I believe, is testimony of the APNU+AFC coalition government’s commitment to local democracy and its efforts in strengthening the integrity of the system.

Councils struggle to pay, where required, for the execution of services, and more so salaries and stipends because residents still believe they should not pay for services provided by municipalities and more importantly their residential taxes.

In one municipality, vendors in the municipal market pay approximately $5000 monthly which represents $1250 weekly and $208 daily. Despite the low rates, some vendors believe the aforementioned amounts are unreasonable. The burial fee in another municipality is $2500. This is a one-off payment and the municipality is expected to continuously maintain burial grounds. This fee is also deemed unconscionable by those who are required to make the payment. In the same breath, the said residents complain about the deplorable state of the burial grounds. Editor, it takes much more than $5000 per resident a year in taxes to fulfil the basic needs of any municipality.

This government, the APNU+AFC coalition government, has tangibly demonstrated its commitment to all municipalities. The responsibility is now with the residents to also tangibly support the elected bodies by paying the required municipal fees and taxes.

Yours faithfully, Gifford Marshall Mayor Municipality of Bartica