Decentralisation of council hailed

EPHRAIM KEORENG
Staff Writer | Wednesday January 13, 2010 00:00

Raditanka said that under the new system, instead of the 174 councilors spend ing a lot of time debating development issues on sub-districts 'these can be discussed by councilors from the concerned region,' he said.

'At sub-council level councilors will discuss motions relating to development projects like gravelling roads in their sub-districts and come to a decision which would also be implemented at that level (sub-council).

This will save time as only representatives from the concerned area will be discussing and deciding on what should be done in developing the sub-district,' he said. The chairman has however declared that though the development (of devolving the CDC) has been implemented (since December 2009), the chairpersons and their deputies who head the sub-councils will not be remunerated.

They will just be getting their normal councilors' salaries just like their colleagues who are not holding positions of responsibility.

'As Botswana Association of Local Authorities (BALA) members we approached the Local Government Ministry to consider remunerating the sub-councils leaders, more so that they hold positions of high responsibility,' he said.

Serowe sub-council chairperson Modisakgotla Makwati hailed the decentralisation exercise, saying it would help in saving time spent attending council business.

He said the CDC covers a vast area that includes 17 constituencies and that they used to spend about four weeks or more debating issues on sub-districts.

'When there is a full council even senior management officers have to come to Serowe.That meant council business at sub-district level used to be held up as the administrators were away. It is good that now we can spend only five days per quarter (of the year) attending CDC business in Serowe,' he said. 

Botho Ntirang, who has been elected chairman of Tonota sub-council, said it is good that councilors will not have to travel long distances to the CDC headquarters to attend long council meetings.

'Now we will be close to the people we represent in our wards. They can come and attend meetings at the sub-councils and get to see the quality of political representation they have during debates,' he said. He said the first sub-council meeting will take place in Tonota next week.