By Mingeli Palata
A few days ago, I had the privilege of escorting a friend of mine to Kanyama compound, not so far away from the City center. The visit was an eye opener. As I navigated through the pot holes, ‘road dams’, I saw the poor infrastructures people call houses and kept on asking myself whether its life that is not fair or there is some element of irresponsibility in this sad state of affairs.
To say the least, Kanyama is not only an unplanned settlement but a breeding ground for poverty, failure and cholera. I couldn’t help but to think of the children at the clinic and schools. I kept on asking ‘where the MP for the area is?’ My colleague was quick to remind me that the MP has no capacity to bring development to a constituency what so ever, only the government has the power to bring about meaningful development.
But wait a minute, what about this word local government? Since that term has some sort of relation to ‘Government’, why can’t they do something about this? So I spent quite some time thinking of the ‘solution’ like my Asian based PR friend whose name must-not-be-mentioned-at-all-costs would put it.
The solution is quite simple actually; it lies in something called systems and policy. You may have come across this awfully long word, ‘Decentralization’. My enormously huge Webters’ lexicon tells me it has something to with delegating management control to specific organs, in this case it will mean allowing individual local councils to run the affairs of their respective territories with little interference from central government.
Government has an unnecessarily huge structure that creates a lot negative bureaucracy and is predisposed to abuse by selfish politicians. There are too many truths to this. For starters, simple common sense will tell you that a developmental paper can take years through the paper trail, approval processes, and committee briefings so much such that by the time it reaches the operational stage, its either there is a recession or there is an election – just like that a plan meets its death.
A centralized local government does not ensure checks and balances, and breeds corruption. Because the system is too big and a simple thing like putting drainage needs the consent of the minister,if not the President, the PS, the town clerk, council of counselors and lord know who else- its hard to have people accountable for their assigned deliverables.
There is no one to point a finger therefore the performance of our counselors and MPs cannot be effectively evaluated instead they will all throw the blame on central government.
The system is also prone to corruption; the Auditor Generals’ report is my witness. Notice how many millions of Kwachas get lost in the ‘paper trail’. Every now and then we hear plot squabbles; counselors or party cadres selling plots and in the long run messing up the good plans made by our civil engineers. Now because the system is so huge, this cannot be investigated, it’s left unchecked and consequently our city is in a mess, no roads, shanty compounds, the list is dreadful.
I propose that we review the system of governance to ensure that the local government is given full administrative authority to direct development and enforce sanity in our various locations. This system should ensure that the council collects revenue in form of taxes and levy’s from community households and businesses, and use it to effectively usher in meaningful change in the way communities are governed. Under this new system the responsibilities of the town clerk and the Mayor should be reviewed to ensure that both offices are relevant to society, as opposed to reducing the Mayor to wearing ‘bling’ and attending fundraising dinner dances.
Lets do what so ever is required to legislate this ‘hands-on’ system of governance which by the way is practiced by affluent countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States of America.You will find that in the US for instance, individual states even go to the extent of making laws that are specific that particular state. I am of the view that this system is best suited to actualize real and progressive change in our lives and will bring Government closer to the people.
l-)
Its the opposite
Too much theory, what people need is action. That’s why they love Sata.
#4
not again please [-x
The Electoral commission headquarters in Accra was besieged on Tuesday by hundreds of oppositionNational Democratic Congress (NDC) supporters demanding their candidate be declared the winner.
AFRICA…
So Palata, you thought it was a joke when Zambians complain? My misis and George compounnds are worse than what you saw in Kanyama not to mention Chibolya
I thought Bwezani promised Kanyama residents, that goverment will work on the drainages and roads before the end of this year.The usual lies i guess!Kanyama is one compound which needs urgent attention. The roads, drainages and the so called houses are a sorry sight to look at. There is abject poverty, No clean water, i mean everything is just wrong in kanyama including the residents themselves. Bwezani and his followers should do something or else we will continue losing more lives from cholera and other outbreaks.
who is this patapata or is it talapa or palata
Rashid
Dont ever go to chibolya dressed in nice clothes. Those people strip naked in full view of passers-by. They first ask for cash, if you dont have, then you are in for it.George compound, is also a mess!Maa! Bwezani should one day take a day off from his duties, take a stroll sround these compund and see how people live in these areas. Nembwa ya mumayadi is better of…
You have a better change of bring the north pole and south pole together than bringing government close to the people.
and pinkly do not talk bad about the shanties . the only undress boss hule’s who wear belts as mini skirts. So show some class and dress well and they will not bother you
#11
Am not talking ill, of these shanties, these things actually happen.We cant deny that. Dress smart oneday, i mean real smart, drive over to Chibolya, see whether you will come back the same.
Am sure you would have figured out this only happens to certain kinds of people. If you dress as if you want people to see your ovaries such happens. Like I said a woman of class doesn’t go through such. I have relatives in chibolya and I have been there dressed smart together with my sisters and They are the most polite people I met.
Pinkly, i have passed through Chibolya driving and its terrible.i dont even know there is no cholera all round the year.
I would not be surprised if we already have a well articulated system gathering dust on the shelves of the govt and local govts. The problem is corruption.
Politicians in Zambia overrule things. They are lawless. Ward councilors have been known to allocate plots in unserviced lands. Kanyama and other shanties did not grow in one night. Deal with corruption or else you will have many more kanyamas in future.
Kanyama and all these filthy unplanned urban shantis are resuls of failed and corrupt leadership of Sata.As Lusaka governor under UNIP he gave out powers to cadres and collected any money from them to allocate themselves anything they could jump on.What we are seeing are the results of those failures.Sata, Kabimba and Emmanuel Chenda the two town clerks all now PF cadres are responsible for the mess in Kanyama, Bauleni,Misisi, Kuomboka, John Lang,Ng’ombe,Jack Compund, mandevu and Mazyopa.
The sad thing about life in shanti compounds is that many people fail to break out of the poverty cycle. There are no role models. Many people dont go far in school. Young girls get pregnant, young boys drink alcohols etc.
In mayadis and other better environments, young people are driven to success in school, careers etc. Parents are role models. There seems to be better parental control, with education the emphasis. A child in this enviornment already stands a better chance of doing well in life, while shanties tend to breed more kaponyas. Yet shanti people need success more than their counterparts. Very sad poverty cycle.
Lawlessness, Poverty and corruption haunt Zambia everyday but whose going to rescue us from these evils.
One reason shanti compounds expand rapidly is because people there breed faster than those in better-off places. eg kabulonga. Most of this growth comes from early pregnancies by young people. This demands more housing. As mentioned above, a lot of these kids cannot break out of the poverty cycle so they build houses within shanties. When you look at building blocks nmanufactured in Lusaka, most of them are used in shanti compounds to satisfy this growth. You rarely see a new house being built in Kabulonga.
Govt needs to urgently address housing issues for people in shanties. They need more land, well serviced land for that matter.
Sarah Jones, kaya.only God knows
#9 I dug up some info for you….. from facebook… hehehe lol
Mingeli has a rich background in broadcasting. Although he went to college to pursue a career in banking, he abandoned that path to pursue his passion in radio and television production. He is constantly developing concepts for adverts, TV and radio shows. He is the brains behind some of the most innovative adverts today on Zambian TV and radio. In addition to being the Multimedia Producer for Savanna Media Center and a Head Writer for the popular soap Kabanana, Mingeli is also a host for a successful radio show on QFM.
#18 Sarah Jones
I think the Anti corruption fight should be expanded to the grassroots. I think that corruption has given rise to unsightly structures like the shanti compounds and the Kamwala shops. I do not believe all those were planned for. But how did they come to be, and why were they not stopped when construction began.
I know of one corrupt foreigner who built fuel tanks in Ndola near the main road to Kapiri. Zesco was forced to more their power lines. The Environment Council of Zam. was powerless because the chap had corrupted Govt officials & Ndola council officials. That is how bad corruption is in Zed. I know the guy. I was there when this happened.
Now this is writing…. new ideas baba
But how many people read this? a few… I doubt if those Ministerread this any way….
# 3, Have you ever heard of the Citizens Democratic Party? (thecitizensdemocraticparty)They could be the party for the future. So far I am impressed to say the least. Google it!
#16 kuku, you are the man, you have called a spade a spade and not a spade as a big spoon. Sata who today is claiming to be the Messiah was at the center of this mess.sata ann his aides should be held responsible for the unplanned settlements in Lsk.
Shanty Nation failed Leadership
The failed and corrupt government has put us to the stuation we are now. I dont surport Sata but he got a good polliece of local government which impower people themselves, the change come from bottom up and not up bottom as our government is, not only development will come in our country when our corrupt gov realise that it can only happen by empower local gov
Nice article and revelation, Mingeli Palata.
However, I was left wondering on your “council of counselors” and “counselors”. Are these supposed to be ‘councillors’? My question stems from that fact that “counselors” are people who gives advice about problems, give guidance on direction or advocate for issues like the lawyers di in courts while ‘councillors’ are members of a local government council, such as a city council.
What ever you intention, it would make more sense for your to clarify this point to me, if not all bloggers.
Due to concerns by Geologist, Canada, and Dobo Banton(9th).LLB, I will be using the username G~la_fj in place of Maestro Hhehhehhehhe for some time.
I also wish to send you all my happy prosperous New Year 2009 to you all old and would-be new LT bloggers.
Having written that, I would like to announce, formally, that I will be very very rare on LT in the year 2009. This is because I am re-mounting operation ‘become Chess Grand Master’ and also I will be working for personal development following the advice from UPND spokesman Zambezi MP Charles Kakoma. I may not be available later in the day to do this since I have been invited somewhere to celebrate New 2009.
Be blessed y’all.
#26 continued.
I will definately miss you all and continue doing a noble cause for Zambia. Someday we will just make it as a Nation that will have moved from low stature to one that will be riding on high, higher, heights.
By God’s grace, I hope to make it into the New Year 2009. I will be praying for you all and our country at large.
Please, remember who you are always and take care of yourselves.
With heart-felt love,
Mugungulu H. Mwaanga as Maestro Hhehhehhehhe.
:-h.
#30 continued.
I will definately miss you all and continue doing a noble cause for Zambia. Someday we will just make it as a Nation that will have moved from low stature to one that will be riding on high, higher, heights.
By God’s grace, I hope to make it into the New Year 2009. I will be praying for you all and our country at large.
Please, remember who you are always and take care of yourselves.
With heart-felt love,
Mugungulu H. Mwaanga as Maestro Hhehhehhehhe.
:-h.
I would like to add to the column that is putting the current blame on the Undereducate, Micheal Chilufya Sata. I have been indicating that Zambia needs a truth and reconcilliation commission for people like Mr Sata to come out in the open and say/write SORRY to all the Zambian people for the mess they have individually done on us all.
I personally sympathise with my fellow country men and women, boys and girls, you name it, for what they are going through.
Both the country and town planning is sad. The water system system is terrible. Hunger is looming from place to place in Zambia because potential crop growers are mashrooming in towns and cities as beggers while staying in illegals.
For sure, we can do better by implementinf the decentralised system, but care must be taken lest provinces like Luapula and Northern remain without anything useful going on there bring life at a stand still. Perhaps, let us introduce a system of gates for travel from one province to another, LOL!
The situation is terrible, we need to abolish the Minister of a Province thing we currently run. We probably have to go for the federal state system which will have administrative/executive provinces for the central GRZ system run in Lusaka the Capital City has failed us. This system is what has caused overcrowding in towns with characters that are now voting for undereducates to lead Zambia. Sad!
“So, we are hearing a lot of our competitors accusing us that we have not delivered. Surely, in 60 days, how many bridges can you build? How many houses can you construct? We are being accused about the difficulties the world economy is having. I even find people with grade four education saying they have got solutions to the problem of the economy,” Mulongoti said.
source: maravi. blogspot. com/ 2008/ 12/ mulongoti- denounces- govt- critics. html
Minister Mulongoti couldn’t have put it much better than this.
The people of Zambia are tired of lies and feel they have been given a middle figure by the big wigs who live in huge houses with guards day and night and dine at the Pamodzi and expensive places at the expenses of the little man who put them in office.Show us what you have done? Where are the Jobs?Where is fertilizer?Where are the medicines at the hospitals?The poor who have no money to buy medicine die, while you using our money to go to South Africa and abroad for medical treatment at the expense of the little man,That is a figure to the Zambia people.
” This system should ensure that the council collects revenue in form of taxes and levy’s from community households and businesses, and use it to effectively usher in meaningful change in the way communities are governed. ”
I agree with all of the article, except that the real key is to devolve the national budget to local government. 50% of national revenues ($500 million) should go directly to local councils, which would reduce their dependence on local taxes and levies, and prevent this money getting stuck at the ministerial level. It would also massively increase local government budgets.
Give local governments 50% $1.5 million for every 30,000 people, paid out directly by the ZRA (no political interference) and constitutionally hold them responsible for:
– Education
– Healthcare
– Policing
– Utilities
– Administration
Install a ZRA accountant in every council (which will bring in more money through halting corruption and misapplication of funds that it costs).
If you want to read more about decentralization, please check out my manifesto:
maravi.blogspot /com (listed under My Take)
or check out the Citizens Democratic Party, and professor Henry Kyambalesa’s Agenda For Change (for decentralization to the Provincial level).