By Prince J Musa in Kenema.
The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Tamba Lamina has called on chiefs across the country to support the work of the ministry to bring development to rural people.
Lamina made the statement at the beginning of a regional tour to paramount chiefs in the Eastern region on Wednesday.
“This Ministry covers all local councils and paramount chiefs. Therefore, we expect the paramount chiefs to support the ministry because we have the same goal, which is development,” he said in Kenema, his first port of call in the region.
He added: “Paramount chiefs are the bedrock of this ministry and as a ministry we will not succeed without the support of traditional leaders.”
This was the first official visit by the minister to the region since he was appointed. And it is part of a nationwide tour. He said it is a way of connecting with the traditional leaders and to understand the constraints surrounding their work.
The ministry is responsible among many other things to facilitate development in local municipalities across the country.
Residents in Kenema have been bitter for years over the slow pace of development in their district, especially with the poor conditions of the roads. This was a major source of discontent for Kenema people during the last administration.
Chairman of the Kenema District Council, Mohamed Amadu Sesay, said: “The people of Kenema are not happy with the way development is dragging on in Kenema, especially with the road network in the district.”
Minister Lamina responded that the government was currently reviewing the 2004 Local Government Act to strengthen the work of the councils and enhance service delivery.
“This local government Act of 2004 has certain clauses that make councils not function well in terms of service delivery, therefore the review process has started, and it involves all sectors under local government ministry, paramount chiefs and local councils.”
Lamina said they even wanted to revive important committees to make sure traditional authorities like chiefs participate as much as possible in development.
He said: “We want to strengthen chiefdom committees to be functional, but it needs total commitment of paramount chiefs.”
Chiefdom authorities and local council authorities have often been at logger heads in some areas. A major source of the sporadic disagreements is revenue and authority.
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