Perspective Citizens Education And Accountable Governance As the entire nation in the course of the coming months dialogues and deliberates on the intent and content of the revised 1991 Constitution, it is important for those engaged in the process to first all ask themselves as they go about their work this very salient question: What must government do to enable citizens, the majority of whom are illiterate, uninformed and have very little access to authentic sources of news and information, understand the basic laws of the land that establish rights and obligations, defines the powers and functions of the various arms of government, and how political leaders and other pubic officials are chosen and held accountable by the populace? In the process of establishing, strengthening and broadcasting the core principles and values of the nation, as is enshrined in the constitution, it becomes the sacred duty of whatever political party is in power to encourage greater participation of the citizenry in government through widening of the democratic space; that is, if we all agree with the American notion of democracy being, “Government of the People, by the People, and for the People”. The above assertion is in line with the emerging political reality that the traditional concept of the central government as the sole controlling and regulating organization of society no longer holds. Traditionally, it has been held that national governments alone should formulate and execute public policy. Nowadays, more and more we have to take into account that there are many domestic and international actors that help governments to formulate and implement public policies. Therefore, the suggestion is that complete decentralization of the powers of the central governments to units that deal directly with the people, with the central government remaining only as a general overseer would seem to be the most ideal for of constitutional democracy the Constitutional Review Process should envision. E-Governance is now the mode in modern governance. According to the Minister of Information and communication, the ICT platform is part of the reform process to enhance good governance in the country. He highlighted that an ICT based E-Governance platform creates opportunity for various shades of opinion to participate in the governance process; as it reduces the cost and burden of running the public sector by providing a platform for workers to perform their duties more efficiently. Thus, the role of the Human Resource Management Office as a tool for better state governance delivery needs clearer constitutional definition. Certainly, the proposed constitutional review augurs well for better implementation of the government’s Agenda for Prosperity – key areas of which include responsible management of natural resources; sustainable development of infrastructure and cities, and increased resilience and economic diversification. It is worthy to note that these aspects of the AfP can best be implemented by Paramount Chiefs and their councils working in close tandem with the 19 local government councils. The A4P focuses heavily on the fact that natural resources are the foundation of growth and economic diversification for the country. These natural resources are mostly situated in the rural areas. They include agriculture, fishing, manufacturing and tourism, all of which are dependent on natural resources. So also are valuable in global demand non-renewable resources such minerals, oil and gas. These require responsible exploitation, revenue management and mitigation of environmental and social impacts. Local Councils and Paramount Chiefs are also largely the custodians of key renewable natural resources such as land, water, forests, and fisheries. These require sustainable management to avoid resource degradation. Thus, it would form part of the CRC’s wisdom to incorporate into the reviewed national constitution how much revenues are generated by extractive industries. As these are expected to increase substantively over the immediate and long term period, it becomes critical to further improve governance, revenue management and equitable sharing of the benefits for all Sierra Leoneans. Growing the national economy and sharing equitably the dividends to every member of society presumes two axioms: one is responsible and accountable state governance and the other corruption not eating away the gains. Thus, there is the urgent need to rationalize, professional and remunerate the civil service well in order for it to serve as an effect engine and vehicle for translating defined government policies, programs and projects into benefits for the masses. These observations are based on the fact that the challenge facing the nation is how to create a durable democratic system of governance at both national and local levels that promote, support and sustain human development and at the same time induces economic growth that translates into social and cultural benefits for the people. Thus, as we go as a nation about the constitutional review process, it becomes a duty of the governments – central and local – to step up on sensitization of the masses on what the review is about. Basically, the people in their various localities and lingua franca should be educated on the fundamental elements of modern constitutionalism. According to a State House release, these include Supremacy of the Constitution; the Rule of Law; Separation of Powers; Delegated Authority; Checks and Balances; Independence of the Judiciary; Equality before the Law; Civilian Oversight; Subordination of the Military to Civil Authority; Free and Fair Elections, etc.
Posted on: Sat, 03 Aug 2013 12:48:34 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015