Return the third vote to the people and sovereignty to local councils

Prime Minister Najib Razak's statement yesterday that local council election are not necessary as they would only lead to politicking which does not benefit the people, contradicts his vision of putting the people's interest first. If the performances of local councils are far below the rakyat's expectations, then Najib should "release" the federal government's tight grip on local councils.

Najib also said that it is more important for local authorities to concentrate on improving their services to the people rather than be involved in politicking and campaigning.

One of the reasons why local councils nationwide are not living up to the expectations of the people is that they are limited by all sorts of financial constraints and administrative rulings set by the Federal Government such as the Ministry of Finance and so on.

Most of the major functions of local councils are heavily dictated and influenced by the Federal Government. These functions include local councils' procurement processes, solid waste management contracts, the implementation of Certificate of Completion and Compliance which has taken away the role of local councils in granting Certificate of Fitness for Occupation, etc. On top of that, most senior positions in local councils are filled by candidates from the Civil Service Department.

There is also a ruling that restricts local councils in terms of the selection of contractors. For example, small projects are only open to Class F contractors and Alam Flora's agreement with local councils is restricted to Bumiputera contractors only. Local councils no longer handle sewerage discharge and treatment as it has been placed under Indah Water Konsortium (IWK), a national sewerage company, wholly-owned by the Minister of Finance Incorporated. Furthermore, the construction of schools and other building structures that are funded by the Federal Government do not require planning approval from local authorities.

The Federal Government should return sovereignty to local councils and the state government, including the right to select their own officers without interference from the Federal Government's Civil Service Department.

It is the local councils and the state governments that understand the needs and requirements of the local community much better than the Federal Government. The Federal Government ideally should only have the right to enact laws and parliamentary bills, to provide legal uniformity in running municipalities. Even in those areas, the Federal Government cannot function alone without proper consultation with the various state and local authorities.

It is the time to return the third vote to the people and the Federal Government must be prepared to return sovereignty to the local councils so that they can run the municipalities for the benefit and interest of the stakeholders in the local community.