Opinion: Antigua needs subnational government
Antigua and Barbuda continues to be one of the few countries in the world without any sort of nationwide subnational government system.
Even other Caribbean countries have established a nationwide local government system, such as the village councils in Dominica, the regions in Trinidad and Tobago, and the district authorities in Saint Lucia.
Subnational government could help improve local utilities, encourage the proper development of smaller villages, and help shift power away from the total control of the central government.
Subnational government would work best with multiple levels of local government, such as states and municipalities that could cover the entirety of the island.
State governments could be funded by property taxes and would have control over vehicle registration, business, public health, state roads, state courts, state police forces, and crime.
This would allow all regions to be able to improve their quality of life and protect their citizens. State governments could be ran by a state parliament, which would be established by an Act of the national parliament.
State parliaments would allow people from every municipality to truly have their voices feel heard. With more priority put on each village, this would allow everyone to feel the benefits of the nation’s development.
Every municipality would elect one representative to the state parliament. State and municipal elections would be held every two to four years, and every state parliament would have a premier who would designate a cabinet to run the state executive branch.
A map of what states could look like, based on the 2011 enumeration districts, is this:
Municipal governments could be funded by the state governments, and would have municipal councils that could legislate over municipal roads, drainage, littering and clearance of rubbish, noise, public order, fire prevention, beach management, and the encouragement of local culture (such as the adoption of a municipal flag or symbol). Municipal governments could also enforce the policies of the national and state governments within their boundaries.
Municipal governments would be established by the state parliaments. The municipal system would work best if every village was entitled to its own municipal government, rather than a municipal government covering multiple villages.
The benefits of subnational government include less travel time and crowding at government institutions, more focus put on each village, more opportunities for younger people to enter government, better roads, and better recreational facilities.
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Makes no sense if they have no budget. And the cash strapped government will not give up any of their revenue. For instance when you have a town with a Mayor and electes councillors they collect property and other taxes and manage the needs of the town. End of story. It will also mean that the elected MPs in government will lose control. So this is a non-starter.
Until a few years ago, I live in a Village that is part of a Town that has three Villages. The Town is part of a County that is part of a State.
My Village has 6,000 residents. The mayor and all the Village Trustees are voluntary roles; so are the Member of the Board of Education and the Library Board.
Some services are carried out by the village and some like fire Services are Town services.
Even the fire department Board is voluntary as well as the firemen. For a Town of about 20,000 only about 3 people are paid staff.
The Village is known for having one of the best public schools and lots of volunteering. It’s an embarrassment not to be part of some community activity. If you don’t have kids in school, the primary way to meet other villagers is through volunteering.
Sure, they have to pay for sanitation. police, a Court that meets one night per week. Most of the cases are drivers making right on red light, not yielding for pedestrians. or underage teenagers getting drunk.
Integrity, common values and culture; are the hallmark of why that system works.
Antiguans are tied to the “Go see your Minister” form of government. A transactional political system rife with corruption.
What else does our government have to spend on? They do a terrible job already, why not make the government give money to local governments that may do a more effective job? Also, why give more control to the elected MPs, many of whom won their elections by very small margins with the help of the DNA?
This obvious simple solution of collected governance, would be too far reaching as tenable; for the current crop of govermental synchopants still envogue and, steeply based in the Colonial Misery Mindsets of England’s Legacy: to allow for the rational harmony of communal governance at the grassroot level-that would lend itself to the imputation of the people most likely to be affected by the lifting of the oppressive polarization that avail as the present political normal construct, of dangling titled poppets and puppeteer; beholden to self agrandize pandering and profiteering as a mantra of capitalism based on charisma over pragmatism. Thus, It seems more logical, that the current crop of quasi political leadership is more hellbent of transitioning from one form of Colonization to another (Europeans vs Asian). And, without the wisdom or, vision that would allow for the aspiration of the people’s will to be manifest for the full potential of our sovereign desired gain: that local governance in the. seven parishes of Antigua 🇦🇬 Barbuda could truely relish in unitary statehood.
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