By Sue-Ann Wayow
GOVERNMENT will be proceeding to partially proclaim the Local Government Reform legislation soon.
This was announced by Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Faris Al-Rawi on Tuesday during a brief virtual press conference.
Al-Rawi said for the first time, a meeting was organised with Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and all representatives at the local government level for Tuesday inclusive of mayors, chief executive officers and councillors.
However, on Monday, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar indicated that the United National Congress (UNC) local government representatives would not attend.
Al-Rawi said it was disappointing that such a decision was made because the UNC held seven Corporations. Dr Rowley then decided to have Government Minister Camille Robinson-Regis act on his behalf.
When asked by AZP News if there was a rush to implement the act before the upcoming local government elections, Al-Rawi said it has been on the table for 63 years since 1959 and there is an obligation to operationalise law.
He said, “It is time to operationalise decades of discussion.”
Al-Rawi added, “One of the gazetted responsibilities that I have is to wind up the affairs of the Ministry of Rural Development and Local Government.”
He said it was a move towards a broader system of law to empower all representatives in local government and by extension, the constituents.
One of the main reasons for local government reform was to properly equip the corporations with the resources including prosecuting persons who might be contributing to flooding, manpower, equipment and financing to effectively serve the population, Al-Rawi said.
He added that certain lands and assets would also fall under the remit of the corporation so that maintenance can take place.
The meeting on Tuesday was to address issues of relief funding, manpower and services availability.
Al-Rawi said, “We have identified a proclamation timetable that is to be presented to the Cabinet. In that proclamation timetable, the nine laws which we have amended in the local government reform, those nine laws fall next to be operationalise by proclaiming the laws and saying when they will begin to apply.
“Of the 88 amendments, 54 of them are capable of almost immediate proclamation, ten of them require a month to two to have certain mechanism put in place, eight of them, three to six months. Sixteen of them can go on in the background and that can take a maximum of 12 months but in this particular exercise, we are able to immediately begin Cabinet consideration of how we will partially proclaim the law.”
The minister also beseeched constituents to demand from their representatives that they work together for their benefit especially with flooding and other adverse situations.
“We really just want to urge the country to demand of their representatives that we get on with the business of representing people.”
“We are anxious to give them results,” he said.
Al-Rawi also said government will continue with its consultations with stakeholders including trade unions.
Following Al-Rawi’s press conference, UNC representatives also held one led by Opposition MP Khadija Ameen.
Should the law be proclaimed, changes to occur will include a service period of four years instead of three per term, full-time representatives and investments through the collection of the property tax.
The term of office for local government statutorily comes to an end on December 2, 2022, with an “outside window’ within law up to March 1, 2023, Al-Rawi said.
