Restructuring of local government
The report submitted to the government by the Local Government Reformation Commission suggested making each unit of Local Government self-sustaining. It means the Union Parishad or Upazilla Parishad will have to impose taxes on residents at higher rates for all development works and other poverty reduction programmes. With this end in view, the UP Chairman will impose taxes mainly on small traders, marginal farmers and his rival party supporters heavily and intentionally as we observed in the past.
All influential persons of the localities will evade taxes in connivance with the members and commissioners as before.
Almost all development works so far were in fact, engineered by the LGED, Facility Department, Health and Social Welfare Department considering the demand of the area after much deliberation. Maybe, there were some discrimination and political domination in decision making but the check and balance was visible.
The new suggestion might create a total deadlock in development work and generate bitter tension and distort local harmony.
The Local Government Commission of three members as proposed must go into the depth of the matter and prepare an effective working system, so that the decentralisation functions in line with the expectations of the public at large.
We should not forget that our local bodies are age old institutions having the mandate of the constitution.
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