Kamla vex as PM tells House

THE YEAR’S Local Government Election — which was viewed as a sounding board for how people were going to vote in next year’s General Election — has been postponed for a year.

Prime Minister Patrick Manning, in a statement to the House of Representatives yesterday, announced Government planned to extend the life of the local Government bodies which is constitutionally scheduled to end on July 13, for a further year.

This would stretch the current term of office of these Regional bodies to July 13, 2007. It would mean that only mayors and chairmen of Local Government bodies would continue in office, during the year of the extension.

It would also mean that the Trinidad and Tobago electorate may have to contend with two elections next year — local and general — possibly within three months of each other.

General Elections are constitutionally due in October 2007.

Explaining the reason for the decision to delay local elections, the PM said Government drafted new proposals for Local Government Reform and needed time to discuss them with the national community and to implement them. “We should seriously attempt to give those who will be our newly elected Local Government officials, a fresh start in a newly energised, dynamic and progressive system. We should not be satisfied to continue with a situation that denies the full effectiveness of our representatives,” he said.

In an immediate response, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the UNC would not support this action. She said the Prime Minister’s rhetoric sought to mask the fact that during the year of the extension, Central Government takes “total control” of the funding and resources of local government authorities. She said this would allow Government to pump funds in a manner so as to buy votes for the General Election.

Noting the PNM came to power on a manifesto mandate for constitutional reform, Persad-Bissessar stated: “Almost five years after (being in office), you are saying that you are now starting a process of constitutional reform and as a result of that you have to delay the constitutionally due Local Government Elections.”

Saying the PNM had a history of delaying Local Government Elections, Persad-Bissessar said it was deceptive of the PM to use the constitutional reform process as the reason for delaying elections. She said during the year of the extension, all councillors cease to function and become advisors, serving on an advisory council. “In that capacity they have no demand on any vote, resources or funding ... and the Minister becomes the person who determines where money will be spent,” she said.

The PM’s Local Government reform was part of Government’s general Constitutional Reform. He added that Government’s draft new Constitution is expected to be ready by July of this year. “This document will join all in the public domain and provide the national community with the opportunity to further the debate on this fundamental matter,” he said.

Among the PM’s proposals for local government reform is an arrangement for power-sharing between Central and Local Government. He said under this system the Central Government would be essentially the policy making body, whilst Local Government will be the principal executing arm of the State. He added this would not apply to portfolios like national defence, foreign affairs, foreign trade and the energy sector which “for obvious reasons”, would remain under the full purview of the Central Government.

(SEE PAGES 18A & 22A)