Local governance consigned to oblivion

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, Dec 30

Two successive governments' rhetoric did precious little for both local and social development in the year gone by.

The poor report card of the Ministry of local Development (MoLD) is a microcosm of a complete breakdown in governance. Consider this: Of the 3,915 VDC's, around 1,100 is bereft of secretaries for about a year when the local bodies have been running without elected representatives for eight years . "The lack of service delivery mechanism in these areas doesn't augur well for the government," said Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya, spokesperson for the MoLD.

The UML-led ruling coalition's lofty promises such as apponting elected representatives in all the local bodies within 100 days and declaring 41 new civic bodies came a cropper. Nothing came of forming the National Muslim Commission and a Committee on Ostracised and Marginalised People, either. The cabinet is yet to take a call on the fourth amendment to the Local Self-Governance Regulation, 2009. The Waste Management Act, too, is yet to be amended. However, monthly allowance for the Rautes has been doubled from Rs 500.

The budget of MoLD has been increased by another 10 billion. There is less achievement and lack of proper utilisation of development funds allocated in the local bodies, said Thapaliya.