Should local council elections be revived ? They were held during the first prime minister's era, if I am not mistaken but eventually they were abolished. Why? The then Alliance Government felt, rightly or wrongly, that there was already too much politics with two elections - parliamentary and state.

So there was no necessity to have a third one, they said. I am afraid there was another reason other than the official version - the fear of losing political power through local council elections.

You see, local councillors are answerable to the rate-payers. And there are a lot of local problems - potholes, clogged drains, crime and poor lighting, recreational facilities, markets and public transport to name a few.

These problems take a lot of sweat to solve and they are not for local councillors who want an easy life with perks thrown in and the occasional trip overseas. Further, the leaders in power like to dish out positions to their loyal members and this is one of the avenues to give them added revenue! So now local councillors are appointed rather than elected.

The idea of ‘you scratch my back and I scratch your back’ is a win-win situation. The leaders are assured of loyal support from their underlings while the underlings in turn are given some ‘sweets’ so they will do the bidding of their leaders.

But who are the losers? The rate-payers! They can complain about the various problems but no councillor will listen. Why? Because they are picked by the chief minister or the president of the local council or municipality. They are not answerable to the rate-payers. The rate-payers can go to hell as far as they are concerned.

Since they are not accountable to the people in their area, they become ‘Little Napoleons’, a phrase coined by the prime minister. They are kings in their little kingdoms! The rate- payers cannot shake them. Hence, the bad conditions in a particular area become worse day by day.

The only solution to right this wrong is to get rid of the leaders - power-mania filters down from the top to the bottom. Good governance must flow from the top. But if the leaders refuse to act or are unable to act for fear of losing political support, then get rid of these powerless or weak leaders.

A strong leader will follow the motto ‘The buck stops here’. In other words, he will accept full responsibility and is accountable to the people who voted him in. If he fails to carry out his duty with due diligence or is too weak to act, then show him the door. This is the only way to take him to task. And the best time is at the general elections.

It is up to the people to decide whether they want local council elections. This can be revived if the people desire it. With local council elections held periodically, the people have a final say on whether a certain candidate has done his job conscientiously or not. He or she cannot take the people for granted, he or she has to perform. Just like a pupil in school, show your report card!