As many of you may be aware, the Houses of Parliament has passed the KSAC General Elections (Amendment) Bill which allows for the Local Government elections to be postponed until December 2016. Like many of you, I too would have welcomed the elections being held on time. I am however more that pleased that finally, we have entrenched local government in the constitution of Jamaica.
In addition, the Unified Services Bill has also been tabled. We await the other two bills to complete the tabling of all three strategic laws. This is the closest we have come to giving life to the recommendations from the years of discussions that were led by the National Advisory Council.
Entrenchment is a major step. The role of community based organizations; a participatory approach to governance and systems that can lead to greater efficiency and effectiveness as well as transparency and accountability are other important pillars of Local Governance. The Government of Jamaica is taking the necessary steps to ensure that we complete this phase of the reform. I know that you too are looking forward to this new period.
As the debate takes place on these issues over the ensuing months, I ask that we all use every opportunity to talk about what we have been able to achieve over the years. Let’s make sure that we raise the bar in these discussions.