National 4 (Spotlight Weekly)

“Un-elected Local Bodies Pave Way For Irregularities And Embezzlement”

— Rajendra Pandey

Rajendra Pandey, former member of parliament, is a central leader of the Unified Marxist Leninist. Chief of the Local Bodies Department at the UML, Pandey is known as a strong advocate for decentralization. He spoke to SANJAYA DHAKAL on issues relating to current impasse and ways to overcome it. Excerpts:

What are your observations of the last two years when the local bodies remained in a limbo?

The period of the last two years was that of destruction. The local bodies were gradually evolving and gaining precious experiences. A lot of work had been done. Sources were increasing. For instance when the first local elections were held in 2049 and elected representatives took hold of Lalitpur DDC, it had annual financial source of just over Rs 100,000. This figure rose exponentially to over Rs 40 million within the next ten years. The local bodies, including VDCs, DDCs and municipalities were able to raise sources around Rs 4 billion annually. Day by day, the local bodies were working to decrease the dependence on the central government. All this has changed now.

What do you mean by the change?

Well, after the government appointed officials to handle the local bodies, there have been a lot of irregularities. The resource allocated for development in villages have been found to be used to build toilets in the District Administration Office. Sources allocated for specific service delivery were not used for the purpose. Financial irregularities hit the roof. Unlike elected representatives who are accountable to their voters, government employees have no such responsibility. Besides, as officials come from outside the village, they don’t particularly have any emotional or other attachment with the place.

What other problems were witnessed in the period?

During the tenure of the elected representatives, they had fought hard to bring in resources for their districts and villages. They were able to charge certain types of taxes from the businesses and industries in their region. Of late, the businessmen have filed a series of cases in the court demanding the revocation of such local taxes – and have succeeded in their attempt in some cases. This is because the government officials are not too keen about defending those things. Furthermore, when the government nominated political persons to head the local bodies, it mostly chose the persons who had, in the past, been roundly defeated by the people in the elections. They did not have the mandate. They, too, were unable to take care of local concerns.

What is the solution to this impasse then?

There is no doubt that elections are necessary. Until such time when elections could be held, we have no better option than to restore the elected representatives. That would certainly ensure that development projects are continued. Even now people approach their formerly elected representatives whenever they want some service. This is the level of faith that the people have on them.

Your party is also in the government. In fact, the Ministry of Local Development is headed by your party leader. Why hasn’t it restored the elected representatives?

The Minister has constantly said that he is for the restoration of the elected representatives. But due to compulsions of coalition politics, the decision to that effect could not be held.

Don’t you think it was a step backwards when the current government re-appointed officials replacing the nominated heads of the local bodies?

Well, in a sense, it was a step backward. However, we must keep our fingers crossed since the Minister has promised that this is only a short-term measure and would soon announce better decision.

How can you assure that restoration of elected representatives will work?

It can work because along with elected representatives come legitimacy, people’s mandate and accountability. Besides, parties will also be behind them. They can also work towards the conflict management. Quite clearly the Maoists were able to expand their campaign in the period when the local elected bodies were in a limbo. In a sense, by dissolving elected bodies, we emptied the field for them to play as they liked and without political opponents.

Do you think more devolution is required at this juncture?

Well, devolution is always welcome. But this is a wrong time to discuss such good things as we face larger questions. In fact, I think that there should be broader national consensus on devolution. Decentralization should be made a national slogan. It should not be left alone for the Ministry of Local Development to carry out. It involves cross-cutting issues and each and every ministry is responsible for decentralization. At present, the local bodies are given executive and, to an extent, legislative power (as they can frame sub-regulations). If we want to pursue the concept of local government, they should also be provided with judicial powers. It is said that over 90 percent of disputes arise due to sudden anger. If the local bodies are allowed to manage such disputes, most of them could be settled out of court.