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New councillors trained in their duties
8 May 2006 By Sipho None IN line with the government's vision of improving communication between municipalities and the people they serve, the South African Local Government Association (Salga) hosted a rigorous induction training programme for new councillors in Mogale City. Over seven days more than 150 councillors on the West Rand dealt with issues ranging from policy and the legal framework guiding local government, to co-operative governance and the roles and responsibilities of councillors among others. Pringle Raedane, Salga's head of municipal finance, said the training was intended to show the new councillors how the organisations for which they would be working, operated. "We have realised that in some areas new councillors are lost in that they do not understand how municipalities operate. This training is set up so as to expose them to the operations of municipalities that they are going to work for," Raedane said. Another aspect was discussing how they could deliver services to the people who voted them into power. According to the Handbook for municipal councillors, as a public official a councillor should review and be familiar with local government laws and their amendments. "We started with the legal and legislative framework with a view that the councillors would understand where the institution comes from and the execution of municipalities," Raedane explained. "Hence the emphasis was on legislation such as the Municipal Systems Act and Municipal Structures Act." Besides the legislative and policy framework within which developmental local government operated, the understanding of co-operative governance caused some heated debate. The handbook says co-operative governance warrants that the government delivers on its mandate to provide services to its people, deals with challenges such as poverty and unemployment, and promotes and enhances investment, development and growth. In her keynote address, West Rand District Mayor Faith Matshikiza spoke about the importance of co-operative governance and the responsibilities of councillors. "This induction will assist councillors to have a better understanding of their roles and responsibilities on matters of governance, as well as the core function of local government," she said. Boyce Maneli, Mogale City's chief whip, concurred, adding that communities would come up with long lists of needs that were not taken into account. "The Integrated Development Programme and municipal budgets are critical areas that need attention. Our communities always approach us with lists of issues and needs not taken into account," he said. "Therefore, if new councillors can pay attention to the municipal financial constraints it will help them understand how to prioritise and be realistic on what can be achieved with the available resources." Maneli added that councillors should not be in conflict with their communities. African Christian Democratic Party councillor Jeffery Daniel, a new kid on the political block, said the orientation had benefited him and clarified his role and responsibilities. "The induction was beneficial in the sense that it acclimatised me with all work pertaining to the executive functions, the legislative framework for local government and, of course, my role and responsibilities as a councillor," Daniel said. Matshikiza emphasised that communication with communities should be frequent. Councillors are expected to be in close contact with their constituencies "on the ground" and keep the council informed about the real experiences and views of municipal residents. They also are expected to ensure that concerns related to their wards are represented in the City council. Other responsibilities are to hold regular public meetings in their wards and to interact directly with any interested group - even if that group is not represented on the ward committee. As elected representatives councillors need to carry out their duties in a transparent and accountable way. Their actions must be visible to the public so that the public or their party can object when they feel their interests are not being represented adequately. International experience has shown that citizen and community participation in local government is essential to effective governance. One important and lasting way of ensuring this participation is through structured and institutionalised frameworks. Community members, however, also have duties to ensure governance is effective. They need to observe the procedures of their municipality; pay promptly for services and rates; respect the municipal rights of other members of society; allow officials reasonable access to their property, especially when they are carrying out their municipal duties such as inspection of electricity infrastructure; and comply with municipal by-laws.
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The South African Local Government Association hosts an induction training programme for new councillors in Mogale City
Related stories New councillors reach out to the people New mayoral committee named Handbook shows way to ward committee success Ward committees bring communities on board |
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