Għandna ħtieġa ta’ Gvern Lokali u Gvern Reġjonali li jkun b’saħħtu. Irridu npoġġu fil-prattika is-sussidjarjetà. Fi ftit kliem id-deċiżjonijiet li jolqtu l-ħajja ta’ kuljum għandhom ikun l-iktar viċin possibbli tan-nies. ADPD-The Green Party qed jipproponi li l-amministrazzjoni pubblika tkun diċentralizzata. It-tmexxija ta’ kuljum għandha tkun f’idejn il-Kunsilli Reġjonali u l-Kunsilli Lokali. Il-Gvern Ċentrali għandu jkun ir-regolatur imma l-operaturi għandhom ikunu l-Kunsilli Reġjonali u l-Kunsilli Lokali. Dan qalu Carmel Cacopardo Deputat Chairperson u kandidat għas-7 u l-11-il Distrett.

Dan għandu japplika fir-reġjuni kollha, u mhux biss fir-reġjun ta’ Għawdex. Dan ikun l-applikazzjoni prattika tal-prinċipju ta’ sussidjarjetà fl-amministrazzjoni pubblika. Prinċipju bażiku li aħna qed ninsistu li għandu jkun ankrat fil-kostituzzjoni. Għandu japplika għall-oqsma kollha fis-settur pubbliku bl-eċċezzjoni tal-ordni pubbliku, id-difiża, il-faċilitajiet korrettivi, l-ġustizzja, s-sahha u l-affarijiet barranin. 

Wieħed mill-oqsma ewlenin li dwaru ir-responsabbiltà ta’ kuljum għandha tgħaddi f’idejn il-Gvern Reġjonali hi dik dwar l-ambjent u dwar l-ippjanar għall-użu tal-art. L-awtoritajiet ċentrali għandhom iżommu r-rwol ta’ regolatur u l-funzjoni operativa għandha tgħaddi f’idejn il-Gvernijiet Reġjonali. L-esperjenza turi li l-Gvern Lokali u dak Regjonali jkun ferm iktar kapaci li jhares l-ambjent mill-Gvern Centrali li ilu jgħaffeġ.

Sandra Gauci, Chairperson ta’ ADPD-The Green Party, Kunsilliera San Pawl il-Baħar u kandidat għas-6 u t-12-il Distrett qalet li l-Kunsilli Lokali bħalissa huma dgħajfa iktar minn qatt qabel. Gradwalment ġew trasformati minn gvern lokali għal front office tal-customer care tal-gvern. Il-gvern jindaħlilhom kontinwament. U dan apparti li f’numru ta’ każi għandna kunsilli li huma mimlija b’kunsilliera li huma persuni ta’ fiduċja ta’ Ministri fil-kariga, u fil-fatt jaħdmu fil-Ministeri. Din mhix xi ħaġa ġdida, imma żdiedet konsiderevolment f’dawn is-snin u qed tagħmel ħsara kbira lill-Kunsilli infushom. Qed jingħata l-messaġġ kontinwu li uħud mill-Kunsilli huma l-bidilli tal-Ministru.

Gauci insistiet li r-responsabbiltà għat-tmexxija tal-lokalitajiet għandha tkun f’idejn il-Kunsilli u mhux f’idejn Ministeri jew Dipartimenti tal-Gvern. Dan jgħodd għall-ħidma kollha mill-knis sal-manteniment tat-toroq. Gauci spjegat li x-xogħol li qed isir preżentement mill-gvern fil-pjazza ta’ Buġibba kellu jkun f’idejn il-kunsill. Il-Gvern irid jieqaf jindaħal fejn ma’ jesgħux.

Is-sitwazzjoni preżenti hi tali li diversi ministeri qed jiddeċiedu huma lil min jagħtu l-flus u għal-liema attivitajiet, għal-liema proġetti ta’ pedestrijanizazzjoni li jridu huma, għal-liema ġnien iridu huma. Il-hidma tal-kunsilli f’numru ta’ kazi saret photo-ops għall-ministri li jikkompetu bejniethom għall-viżibilità. Saħansitra s-servizz tal-iskart fuq livell reġjonali huwa kkontrollat mid-dipartiment. Dan hu hazin u huwa negazzjoni shiha tal-iskop li ghalih twaqqfu l-Kunsilli Lokali.

Transport Malta u aġenziji oħra kontinwament qed jieħdu d-deċiżjonijiet minflok il-kunsilli lokali, ħafna drabi wara indħil mill-ministeri direttament favur xi resident meqjus ta’ ġewwa. 

Il-kapaċità għall-infurzar ta’ affarijiet sempliċi hija non-eżistenti. Il-wardens spiċċaw ‘pulizija tat-traffiku’ tal-gvern ċentrali, il-pulizija tal-komunita’ spiċċaw ta’ xi 6-7 lokalitajiet f’daqqa, u jridu jmorru minn post għal ieħor bil-mixi. 

Fejn ikun hemm proposti għal żvilupp fil-lokalitajiet, ħafna drabi l-fehma tal-Kunsilli Lokali hi injorata. Mhux aċċettabbli li d-deċiżjonijiet jittieħdu mill-Bord tal-Awtorità tal-Ippjanar b’rappreżentant wieħed tal-Kunsill Lokali effettwat. 

Il-proposti detaljati fil-manifest elettorali ta’ ADPD għal dan is-settur huma s-segwenti:

Il-prinċipju tas-sussidjarjetá għandu jingħata għarfien kostituzzjonali bħala linja gwida għall-amministrazzjoni pubblika ta’ pajjiżna.

Hemm bżonn impenn ikbar mill-Gvern biex permezz tad-dipartimenti, aġenziji u awtoritajiet imwaqqfa b’liġi l-Kunsilli Lokali jkunu kkonsultati u involuti minn kmieni f’dak kollu li jikkonċerna lill-lokalitajiet.

Tkun inkoraġġita l-kolleġjalità u dan billi ir-rwol ta’ kull kunsillier ikun apprezzat iktar mhux biss bl-assenjazzjoni obbligatorja ta’ responsabbiltajiet lil kull Kunsillier imma ukoll billi l-għoti ta’ onorarja raġjonevoli ma jsirx biss lis-Sindku imma ukoll kemm lill-Viċi Sindku kif ukoll lill-kunsilliera kollha.

Għandha tkun diċentralizzata l-amministrazzjoni pubblika tal-pajjiż u dan a bażi tal-prinċipju tas-sussidjarjetà, dan għandu jsir b’mod gradwali bit-tmexxija ta’ kuljum tgħaddi f’idejn il-Kunsilli Lokali u l-Kunsilli Reġjonali. 

It-tmexxija kollha tal-Kunsill Reġjonali għandha tkun waħda demokratika u dan billi kemm il-President kif ukoll il-membri tal-Kunsill Reġjonali jkunu soġġetti għall-vot popolari. L-ebda wieħed u waħda mill-politiċi reġjonali jew lokali ma għandu jkun full-time. F’kull każ huwa s-Segretarju Eżekuttiv, uffiċjal pubbliku li għandu jkun responsabbli għat-tmexxija ta’ kuljum.

Il-Kunsilli Lokali għandhom jingħataw rwol deċiżiv fit-teħid tad-deċiżjonijiet dwar proġetti maġġuri fil-lokalità tagħhom. 

Il-prinċipju tas-sussidjarjetà għandu jkun applikat anke għall-ħarsien tal-ambjent (inkluż l-ippjanar għall-użu tal-art). L-awtoritajiet ċentrali jżommu r-rwol ta’ regolatur u l-funzjoni operativa tgħaddi f’idejn il-Gvernijiet Reġjonali.

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Local and regional government

We are in need of a strong local government and regional government. We need to practice the principle of subsidiarity. In a nutshell, implementing subsidiarity signifies that decisions concerning everyday issues should be made by people in direct contact with them. ADPD – The Green Party is proposing that public administration should be decentralised. The everyday administration should be in the hands of the regional councils and the local councils. The central government should be a regulator, but the operators should be the regional and local councils. This was affirmed by Carmel Cacopardo, deputy chairperson and candidate for the seventh and eleventh districts.   

This should apply to all regions, and not only the region of Gozo. This would be a practical application of the principle of subsidiarity in public administration. This is a fundamental principle which we are insisting should be included in the constitution. It should apply to all public sectors with the exception of public order, defence, corrective facilities, justice, health and foreign affairs.

One main system that should be passed on to the regional government is the environment and land use planning. The central authorities should only retain their role as regulators, and operations should be passed on to the regional government. Experience has shown that a local and regional government is much more effective at protecting the environment than the central government, which has been making many mistakes. 

Sandra Gauci, Chairperson of ADPD-The Green Party, local councillor in Saint Paul’s Bay and candidate for the sixth and twelfth districts said that local councils are weaker than ever before. These have been transformed into front offices for customer care service for the government. And apart from this, there are a number of local councils whose local councillors are persons of trust for current ministers, and in fact work in their ministries. This is not a new phenomenon, whoever it has increased in frequency in the past years. However, this practice has damaged local councils over the years, with the result that some local councils have been transformed into representatives of sitting Ministers.

Gauci asserted that management of localities should be left in the hands of the local councils and not in the hands of the ministers or of government departments. This applies to all functions, from street cleaning to road maintenance. A case in is the Buġibba square currently being refurbished by central government. This is an usurpation of the functions of local councils.

The current situation is that a number of ministries are making decisions on funding and for what purposes, whatever pedestrianisation programme they want or whatever garden they find useful. The works currently being carried out in local councils are no other than photo opportunities to compete for visibility amongst themselves. This is very destructive and goes completely against the reason why local councils were established in the first place. 

Transport Malta and other agencies are continuously making decisions instead of the local councils themselves, frequently the result of direct interference of a ministry to give favours to residents who are considered loyalists. 

Enforcement for simple matters is non-existent. Wardens are no more than traffic police for the central government, and the community police are now responsible for six or seven localities at one go, often walking around from one place to another on foot. 

Whenever there are proposals for development, the views of the local councils are often ignored. It is not acceptable that there is only one local council representative on Planning Authority boards making decisions on behalf of these localities. 

The following are proposals from the ADPD electoral manifesto for this sector:

The principle of subsidiarity should be given constitutional acknowledgement as a guide for the public administration of our country.

There is the need for government, through its departments, agencies, and other authorities, to consult and involve local councils in all stages of any service provided to them.

To encourage collegiality by recognising that the role of each councillor is not only an issue of assigning responsibilities, but also by giving a reasonable honorarium to not only the mayor, but also the deputy mayor and all councillors.

To decentralise the country’s public administration based on subsidiarity, and gradually pass on these responsibilities to the local and regional councils.

The leadership in the regional councils should be subjected to a democratic process, by having the president and the members of the regional council subject to a popular vote. No local or regional councillor should have a full-time role. In that case, it is the Executive Secretary, a public official, who should be responsible for day-to-day administration.

Local councils should have a major role in the decision-making process in relation to major projects in their localities.

The principle of subsidiarity should be applied to environmental issues as well, including land use planning. The central authorities should retain their role as regulator whilst operational functions should be left to the regional councils.