Parliament last week received a report on local government regulations, which lists two more functions to be transferred to local authorities.
As expected, this news has been greeted with little enthusiasm. This simply demonstrates that the people have finally seen the central government for what it is: it is not interested in decentralisation.
Our position on democracy and governance has always been clear and we continue to stand by it. You cannot talk about these two without mentioning local government, which is one of the cornerstones of participatory democracy.
Local government is responsible for a range of vital services for people and businesses in defined areas. Among them are well known functions such as social care, schools, housing and planning and waste collection, but also lesser known – licensing, business support, registrar services and pest control.
Local governments can promote economic development by: keeping communities informed and including them whenever possible in the decision making and marketing of the community.
They can also do that through promoting the growth of all economic sectors in the region and encouraging sustainable business practices.
As it is, the kind of local governance that Lesotho has had over the years, which relegated local councils to mere extensions of the central government, has proved to be nothing more than pure hogwash.
Important arguments in favour of decentralising government are that it: creates an efficient and reliable administration, intensifies and improves local development, better ensures the rights of the local population to have a voice in government, and better protects minorities. Decentralisation helps the directors at the lower levels to take that load of choices, which are for the advancement of association, they resolve all issues by themselves and to foster answers for taking care of the different issues they face. This aids in improving certainty and confidence among the representatives.
