GOVT. RESPONSIBLE FOR SORDID STATE OF LOCALGOVERNANCE

DEAREDITOR,

The text of the article publishedonMarch4,2023: Region 10‘s REO, Chairman at loggerhead o v e r r o l e s a n d responsibilities is but another manifestation of a major problem that inhibits thefunctioningofthesystem of governance in Guyana. It is reported that that the Regional Executive Officer “has stated that he is not accountable to the Council and committees established byRegionalChairman”

That statement reflects the disposition of the G o v e r n m e n t a n d pronouncements of the Minister responsible for Local Government The Governmentthereforehasto be held responsible for the sordid state of local governance in Guyana and made to practice Good Governance,whichtheytout fromtimetotime.

Hereunderisacritiqueof the REO‘s position as stated in the Kaieteur News which clearly and evidentially exposes that there is jaundiced articulation of

G o v e r n a n c e ; a n d c o n s e q u e n t i a l maladministration in Public Administration.

Regional democratic councils are statutory bodies/legal bodies (council properandanadministrative arm) established in keeping withtheprovisionsofarticle 72 of the Constitution and enabled by the Local Democratic Organs Act (LDOA), which specifically states: “local democratic organ shall be a body corporate by the name prescribed for it by its constitutionorder.”

The LDOA further provides for “any Minister, department of Government or statutory authority, department to delegate any of his or its statutory powerorauthoritytoalocal democratic organ where the power or authority relates to matters within the responsibilityofthatorgan.” It should therefore be noted that delegated functionswhicharetheones thatarepresentlycarriedout bytheRegionalDemocratic (Continuedonpage5)