Decentralisation: Gov't must hold mayors accountable.

Decentralisation, be it "effective" or "accelerated," as government officials love to qualify it, is the controversial form of government the Biya regime has opted for, against federalism, to take the country to emergence.

That is why President Paul Biya, in his end-of-year speech of December 31, 2022, said “...municipalities can and must make a decisive contribution to the revival of our economy, the resolution of the thorny issue of youth unemployment and the vitalisation of local democracy".



Mayors of councils are at the nexus of the decentralisation process with their councils as the government at the grassroots. So, the system cannot succeed, when some of the municipal administrators are squandering resources with impunity. 

In that process, many are owing workers' salaries. Some award contracts they can't pay but ironically pay for shoddy jobs, provided they take a sip from the chalice of corruption or use fronts to get the juicy contracts for themselves.

There is the notorious case of one of the mayors, who travelled abroad with his wife, who is not a staff of the council, but impersonating as such, and the municipality spent over 25 million FCFA, for the tourist trip, which brought no benefit to the municipality!

Such reckless spendings are common in many councils, and even when whistle-blowers sound the siren, they are intimidated into submission.

The result is often mountains of debts, which such mayors abandon to their successors.

At a press conference in Yaounde, Augustin Tamba, President of the United Councils and Cities of Cameroon, UCCC, was delighted to announce the authorisation by the Minister of Finance, who, through a January 29, 2025 decision, ordered a special debt relief for councils.

Seventy percent of debts owed some institutions like the Directorate General of Taxation, DGI; Electricity supply company, ENEO; Cameroon Water Utilities, CAMWATER; and the National Social Insurance Fund, CNPS, will be written off.

According to Tamba, the measure will help councils redirect resources towards local development projects. He said the move shows the government's commitment to support councils to boost the living conditions of the local population.

“Encouraged by these positive measures taken by the government of the Republic, we are going to continue our lobbying to find lasting and sustainable solutions to other equally important challenges," he told reporters.

The fiat is in accordance with the provisions of the 2024 Finance Law, which provides relief for heavily indebted municipalities and paves the way for redirecting resources toward development projects.

"This is a major step forward that reflects the government's commitment to supporting municipalities and strengthening their capacity for action," Tamba affirmed, while emphasising that other challenges remain and require special attention.

While expressing gratitude to the Minister of Finance, he called for the speeding up of the process to ensure a rapid outcome. 

“Councils are at the forefront of local development. They are in direct contact with the day-to-day realities of the population. The institutional and financial reinforcement of councils is an imperative if we are to consolidate the decentralisation process desired by the Head of State,” Tamba reiterated.

He also said the UCCC is working with the government to definitively address their concerns, with dialogue already initiated with the ministers of finance, and decentralisation, as well as with the associations of regional councils and city mayors.

“We are convinced that with better local governance, modernised taxation and equitable redistribution of resources, Cameroon's councils can fully play their role as engines of social and economic progress,” he added.

But that important role can only be successful, if mayors are held accountable, especially in the North West and South West Regions, where many have abandoned their chambers and still claim to execute investment projects effectively!

Public Independent Conciliators in the two Regions have persistently pointed out flaws and irregularities bordering on mismanagement in many councils. But without the power to prosecute, they are often being mocked.

Senators, who are also expected to scrutinise councils, do not as much as attend council sessions or hardly even visit the municipalities of their origin.

If councils must be catalysts of development, and capable of undertaking investment projects that create jobs and social amenities as envisioned in the Decentralisation Code, the government should regularly pay the 15 percent of national budget allocated to them by law, on time.

Councils should be under the supervision of the Minister of Decentralisation and Local Development, not the Minister of Territorial Administration, while mayors should be held accountable by the electorate, so that those found wanting should be prosecuted.

 

 

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