Allow MPs to Occupy their Traditional Role of Legislators- Amb. Emmanuel Mwamba

Allow MPs to Occupy their Traditional Role of Legislators

Amb. Emmanuel Mwamba Wrote;

Government primary justification in the constitutional-making process is that it is necessary to expand parliament to include women, youth and persons with disability to increase their participation in governance.

Government is also insisting that some constituencies are so large that they need to implement the recommendations of the 2019 Delimitation  Report before the country holds the next election.

This is where the argument is totally folly.

Delimitation, an exercise done every ten years, after the Census exercise, doesn’t necessary need to result in new constituencies!

Delimitation is the process of redrawing the boundaries of electoral districts, and adjusting boundaries based on census data.

However we have promoted the notion that Members of Parliament need to resolve all  social-economic issues in the Constituency from; building roads, bridges, schools, clinics and hospitals, fighting crime while attending to the needs of constituents such as funerals, sickness, and to their meet educational needs.

We have everything so twisted!

I recognize that MPs represent the views and interests of their constituents in Parliament, but that is their primary role and development must be undertaken by local structure.

DECENTRALIZATION POLICY IS THE SOLUTION

When we truly implement decentralization and devolution process, the MPs will revert to his/her primary role of a legislator, a law-maker.

It is for this reason that MPs are usually nine months away to Lusaka to attend to Parliamentary business.

We must therefore enhance the role of Councillors, the Council and the Mayor/Council Chairperson for our people to know and feel truly represented.

The structure exists already where a team of planners, technocrats and engineers led by the Town Clerk/Council Secretary and the councillors seat in Ciuncil to hammer development of the area.

It is for this reason that Government is expected to channel capacity funds and financial support to local authorities as part of its decentralization policy to support the technocrats and plans of the district.

If we allow districts to plan their own development with this democratic infrastructure, we will deliver development and change far quickly than the CDF approach. We must emphasise that CDF is not decentralization!

CDF is a small component in the decentralization and devolution process and cannot be the anchor of grassroot development.

Many people wonder why CDF is not effective despite the huge increase from K1.6million to K36.1million.

This is because the emphasis and mechanism is lopsided and impractical.

The focus should be in investing in the district council, or municipality where a democratic leadership exist (Mayor and Councillors) and delivery mechanism (Town Clerk and team) exist to bring actual and planned development.

We must continue to build financial, procurement capacity, and fiscal decentralization and resource mobilization mechanisms of the Councils.

Infact, we may even need fewer MPs than we currently have.

And no one will miss the MPs as they will revert to their traditional and primary role of legislators.