By Mama A. Touray
David Gomez, the Director of Governance at the Ministry of Local Governments, Lands and Religious Affairs, on Wednesday at the ongoing Local Government Commission of Inquiry continued with his testimony saying this regime has not taken any step towards the devolution of its functions to the local authorities.
Telling the Commission which is held at the Djembe Hotel, Senegambia, he reiterated that “This regime, too, has not taken any step towards the devolution of its functions to local authorities and it’s the responsibility of the government to make sure that the policy is effected.”
He said if the government is committed to adopting, employing, and implementing the decentralization policy as many will argue, that, it is the way to bring development to the doorsteps of the people, then, he said honestly government should be committed to do the needful for the councils.
“I am always with the conviction that if councils do not have the capacity to absorb these funds that are coming from the central government, it is the central government that has the responsibility. If the argument is that councils do not have absorptive capacity what is the government doing about it? For me, it is not only to say councils did not have the capacity, but what are we doing about the capacity, if we are serious about the determination to pursue the part of decentralization,” he said.
Director Gomez however told the Commission that when audit reports are out they will go through the report with the management to ensure that they remind them of the issues highlighted in the reports and the way forward.