Editorial
Upazila parishad disempowered
A key issue raised
Deputy Speaker Col (retd) Shawkat Ali has brought into sharp focus a matter of vital importance so far as effective functioning of the chairmen and vice-chairmen of the upazila parishads goes. Regrettably, their role has been substantially stifled through a delegation of authority to the upazila nirbahi officers. This is in addition to the preponderance of the MPs at that level in an advisory capacity which is but of a binding nature.
The Deputy Speaker taking part in a national level discourse on 'decentralisation of finance: past, present and future' held in the city made two very cogent points. First, he spoke of an acute deficit in people's control of and their participation in local development works. He thought that such involvement of local communities would have to be provided for systemically rather than being left to occasional verbal commitments. While endorsing his view we would urge the fullest use of the RTI instrument by the people of upazila constituencies. The first prerequisite for grassroots participation is that the people are informed about the allocation, utilisation of development funds and physical targets of projects to be met within stated timeframes.
Each upzila level government agency should be equipped to furnish data on demand. Importantly, it must be made obligatory for the agencies to be responsive to public queries and demand for information. Actually, there has been a longstanding demand for the government departments at the local level to display charts on any development programme or project on a periodic basis.
The second point that the Deputy Speaker made is equally important, if not more. He has asked for empowering local government institutions with delegated financial authority. Without this, a local government institution such as the upazila parishad, which operates in the closest proximity to the people, will be simply unable to deliver goods to the people. The matter deserves to be taken up in parliament and not confined to rallies.
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