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Councils not to replace community groups
7/29/2010
Seeking to dispel any fears, Council Chairman for St. George South, Ruall Harris, stressed that constituency councils were implemented to work in tandem with community organisations and not to replace them.
“It seems to me that there is a misunderstanding, perhaps bordering on suspicion, of the role of the council,” he said, at the recently held ‘Preparing for Entrepreneurship’ St. George South Constituency Council Workshop at the St. Luke’s Church Hall.
He pointed out that councils were required to consult and liaise with residents and community organisations to ensure that their concerns and recommendations on how the council could help improve their condition were heard.
“In this regard, councils are not intended to take over the work and roles of community organisations, nor are councils to take over the work and roles that government departments are set up to undertake. As I see it, our mandate imposes a duty on councils to assist and cooperate with local organisations and government departments, in making sure we all respond in a timely manner to the needs and concerns of the communities in which we all live with the objective of enhancing all our lives,” he stated.
Furthermore, Harris outlined that the purpose of the 18 councils across the island was to improve the delivery of social services to the constituency and to “effectively and efficiently assist in the management of resources assigned to these constituencies within a framework of good governance.”
Other functions according to him include, the identification of the priority needs in the constituency and the recommendation of policies and programs intended for the residents in the constituency to the relevant ministries and government.
“I want to stress that if community organizations are in need of assistance in furthering their goals, which redound to the benefit of the community, we at the council are happy for them to come and talk to us, in order to see how a mutually beneficial relationship can develop,” he stated. (JMB)
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