– President urges regional officials as inaugural NRDCC opened

PRESIDENT David Granger has warned that local democratic organs are not ornaments or central government appendages, but are integral parts of the country’s development and governance.He called on regional bodies to overcome their pettiness and prejudices in a bid to advance Guyana’s development agenda. The President’s warning followed the boycotting of the inaugural meeting of the National Regional Development Consultative Committee (NRDCC) on Friday at the Marriott Hotel, Kingston.

Subject Minister Ronald Bulkan was informed on Thursday night via missives from several regional chairpersons, indicating that they would not participate in Friday’s meeting given their concerns that the committee poses a danger of impinging on the Constitutional authority of the Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs) and municipalities.

Speaking at the inaugural meeting of the NRDCC, the head-of-state made it clear in his address to mayors, councilors and regional officials that Guyana will remain underdeveloped if central and regional governments, which comprise councils and municipalities, are unable to work together.

The promise of a good life he said will not become a reality unless Guyana has economically robust and resilient regions. Local democratic organs, he said, could fulfil their mandates to ensure that the country achieves its fullest potential and noted that capacity must be enlarged, while competence must be enhanced by fostering consultations and cooperation among stakeholders.

The President reminded the gathering of regional officials that Guyana has 10 administrative regions which comprise elected officials; municipalities, Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) and Village councils which are vital organs.

He compared Guyana with other countries and territories that have the same size as some of the regions here and noted that by becoming a green state, Guyana is on the right trajectory towards development.

Describing Guyana as the lungs of the earth, the President said each region has its own ecological zone and biodiversity.

“Each region should be proud of its portion of this great patrimony, it should be an honour to be a regional chairman,” the President said. While noting that “the regions are the roots of economic growth, the development of the region must be stimulated by capital towns… we must enhance their capabilities to deliver education, health, law enforcement, housing, water supply, immigration, taxation, registration of births, deaths and businesses, all of these are needed for human development.”

He charged towns to encourage employment, establish industrial estates, economic diversification, Banking, Commerce, Communication, Insurance, Law Courts, police headquarters, radio and television stations, hospitals, stadiums and business services.

Each region, he added, should supervise its own work through the Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs), Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) and municipalities.
Meanwhile, President Granger lauded the implementation of the NRDCC by Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, and reminded those gathered that the country’s local government system was given a new lease on life in March 2016, after the APNU+AFC coalition government held Local Government Elections (LGE) after 18 years.

The President stressed that the Constitution declares Guyana as an indivisible, secular, sovereign and democratic state and noted that within “that state the local government system is indispensible to our concept of democracy, is essential to the state’s economic, cultural, social and political development.”

Meanwhile, Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, spoke of the Opposition People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) attempts in the past to control Council members and noted that representatives of the party who condoned such behaviour absented themselves from Friday’s meeting.

“…they were fearful that their participation could be seen as endorsing this initiative, which is a consultative committee designed to bring together all of our regions with a view of strengthening regional administration and strengthening the role of RDCs in both the management as well as development of their respective regions.”

Bulkan said the arguments advanced by the PPP councillors were baseless and provocative, given that they are public officers, “I do not think it’s unfair of me to say that there is a certain degree of insubordination in the actions of these officers.”

Nevertheless, he said that the central government will continue to extend the hand of cooperation and collaboration to all democratic institutions. The Minister of Communities said the establishment of the NRDCC is new and is aimed at confronting the enemies of progress, obstacles of development and adversaries of the people. “

“These include crime, disease, ignorance and poverty,” he noted, while informing the officials gathered that in order to break out of the trap of underdevelopment and dependency, there is need for a new system that is programmed and systematic.

Bulkan argued that the local government structure and system must be tailored to fit the social realities, and empahsised the need for there to be consultation and collaboration with all stakeholders.

The minister reminded the gathering that it is important for councillors to be aware of their roles and responsibilities, while stating that training and the provision of resources are critical to the fulfilling of their mandates. “That is why we are here, to serve the people and that is our only job,” he added, while stating that the regional system was not created merely for the administration, but for development.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Communities said his government is committed to regional development through empowerment, but noted the resistance of the opposition PPP/C. He reiterated that his administration will ensure that it respects the democratic organs created by the Constitution.
He stressed that strong RDCs are better able to provide a better feedback to central government regarding the needs of the people. This, he said, results in stronger regions while ensuring a vibrant nation.

“We are a divided nation; we have allowed political and ethnic considerations to divide us,[but] we must put an end to that for the sake of our well-being and that of the future of our children, we must heal our country…”
The NRDCC was held under the theme, “Strengthening Regional Governance through Leadership development, Financial Management and Strategic Networking.”