I empathise with Dr Rowley

THE EDITOR: Prime Minister Rowley last Monday at Skinner Park’s opening complained: “I almost lost my house two months ago because a drain outside of my house is broken and the corporation can’t fix it because they haven’t got sand and cement.”

He sadly added: “The water came through the drain and undermined my yard.”

Such a complaint from a 70-year old senior citizen attracted public sympathy. I for one deeply empathise with our PM. Not only because he is our PM with a very heavy work schedule but such a house threat produces stress upon him and his family.

Why didn’t the relevant authority fix it? Social media dutifully asked if this could happen to the PM, what about the rest of citizens who have similar or even worse collapsed-drain threats to their houses? No sand and cement?

During last October’s budget debate, Faris Al-Rawi, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, proudly announced in Parliament that his ministry "received an allocation of $2.7 billion, $327 million more than it received in fiscal 2022.”

Busy as he is, couldn’t Al-Rawi help the PM? After all, during that same budget debate, Finance Minister Colm Imbert pleaded with ministries, particularly the Ministry of Local Government, “to burn the midnight oil and spend the money allocated.” Al-Rawi got $2.7 billion. He promised “to improve service delivery.” Hmmm.

Rowley’s public declaration serves a larger and quite useful purpose – stimulating Al-Rawi and the regional corporations to execute their statutory duties efficiently and effectively. Al-Rawi should show the public that he knows that the Municipal Corporations Act states that a corporation is directly responsible for “the construction and maintenance of all drains except main drains and water courses along main roads and highways.” The latter are under the Works Ministry.

Last August, in a “serve-the-people mood,” Minister Al-Rawi called upon citizens to “demand that their local government representatives get on with the business of representing people.” He was right.

Last month, I publicly repeated a suggestion to Al-Rawi, one that could have prevented the PM’s troubles. I suggested that Al-Rawi do a survey of all structural challenges (roads, drains, etc) facing regional corporations to prioritise quick solutions, prevent further damage and even tyre-burning, etc.

The serious outstanding question with this local government reform is to what extent will the collected taxes be used by a corporation equitably across all taxpayers or will it be bogged down by political preferences and biased services?

It will be subversive and unjust if squabbles between political parties adversely descend to discriminatory services at the regional corporation level.

RAMESH DEOSARAN

professor emeritus

former Independent senator and chairman of the JSC to inquire and report on service commissions and municipal corporations