Local council elections should be restored to ensure competency, accountability and transparency in upholding the interest of the people. Local councillors and those in high positions in the councils are directly appointed by the state government. Since they are not elected, many of them are unknown to local residents, even in the areas which they are supposed to take care of.

One of the main reasons behind the relative anonymity of the local councillors is because they are not elected. This may result in the lack of accountability and public engagement of the local councillors towards the people. This may also result in poor performing councillors still in power as long as they are ‘protected’ by the party, rather than being accountable to the people they supposed to serve.

In areas in where elected representative is from a different party from the councillors, the line of reporting and accountability becomes even less clear and thus affecting their efficiency.

Councils should at all-time take heed of the people’s concern brought up through the elected representative even from a different political party. However, more often than not, such positions are open for abuses, including those holding high position in the council. It opens up the risks of local councils abusing the concerns of the people for political mileage through the bait of ‘development politics’.

This is a pressing issue as local councillors, in many ways, represent the first respondents to the problems faced by residents be it clogged drains or potholes, misuse of permit or business licenses for vice activities such as illegal gambling and prostitution. This need would demand greater accountability and transparency to the people under their jurisdictions.

Local council election will definitely increase the competency, accountability and transparency as compared to the current system. Besides, it also reflects political representation at the local level and will increase accountability and transparency in local councils and districts spending decisions. Under the current system, local councillors are beholden to the parties which appoint them rather than to the residents whom they are supposed to service.

The appointment of councillors ignores their background and their track record of performance and does not take into account even if they were found to be recalcitrant or totally discredited.

Their positions in the BN parties override all the other considerations, and they can be reappointed - and, in some cases, together with their family members - again and again even if they allegedly flout the law and regulations, allegedly refuse to pay their assessments, allegedly put up buildings illegally and operate their businesses allegedly without licences.

The present system of appointment to local council positions can never eradicate the problem of corruption, malpractice and lack of transparency in local councils simply because the appointed members of the local council are not elected by ratepayers and therefore have no incentive and are not duty-bound to be fully accountable to the public.

Restoring link between residents and councillors

Local council election is the most effective way to restore the link between residents and their local councillors. They will have to campaign in order to be elected, make election pledges and produce election manifesto. Should the councils want to show they were serious in serving the people with greater accountability and transparency, they should have initiated and invite elected reps in their area to their round table meeting to discuss local issues.

It is truly regrettable that the BN government is not bothered about improving the delivery system or about being accountable to the people. That is also part of the reason - besides the fear of being thrashed if local elections are held - why the BN government will not resort to local council elections.

Of course there would be no guarantee that the people would not have any complaints against elected local councils. But insofar as the councillors depend on the people to be elected, they will have to perform in the interest of the people.

While credit should be given to local councils that are doing their level best to provide an acceptable level of service to the public, under the current system, many have earned the wrath of ratepayers for their lackluster and incompetent performance.

For far too long, ratepayers have had to live with poor quality of service by many local councils as exemplified by never-ending problems of bad road condition, potholes, clogged drains, poor maintenance of parks and green lungs, traffic congestion, irregular collection of garbage and slow or lack of response to complaints, or misuse of business licenses for vice activities, it is linked to non-performing councillors which thus clearly shows the failure of the political party that put them there in the first place.

Local councils have become unaccountable, indifferent to people’s woes, inefficient in their management and intolerable in the way services are provided. Councillors become arrogant, abuse their powers, serve themselves, not the public, and are sometimes the source of corruption.

A lot of our wealth is wasted and squandered because there is no effective check and balance system in place. Allegedly unethical and corrupt councillors who are politically rewarded continue to enjoy the confidence of the BN leadership even though the ratepayers are simply disgusted with their conduct, performance and lack of interest for the welfare of the people.

Therefore we urge the state government to stop the rot in our local councils by restoring local government election and eliminating abuses of power and corruption in local councils in line with the aspiration of the people and to pave the way for the restoration of genuine grassroots participatory democracy to improve the efficiency, transparency and accountability which are clearly in the best interest of the people in each constituency.

This is also in line with the chief minister’s pledge for greater transparency and clean governance.

I believe the root cause of the many problems afflicting our local councils is the absence of local council election. By denying the people the right to elect the local government of their choice, the State government has effectively denied them the fundamental right to participatory democracy at the most basic level.

However, in current system where local council election is yet to take place, I urge that the Democratic Action Party be given the right to appoint councillors in the Padawan Municipal Council (MPP), Sibu Municipal Council (SMC), Miri City Council (MCC) and Kuching City South Council (MBKS).

ABDUL AZIZ ISA MARINDO is special assistant to the Sarawak DAP chairperson, Petra Jaya DAP Socialist Youth publicity secretary and DAP’s former candidate for N13 Batu Kitang.