What Lankan ratepayers get
The significance of a local government election is generally lost close on the heels of a general election. The result is usually a forgone conclusion, unlike an election in mid-term when the result becomes a barometer of public opinion, such as those by-elections of yesteryear.

Local government polls should however, not be a party based exercise in which the relative strengths of political parties are determined. It will be nice to see the day when local polls are determined on the character and calibre of the individual candidates, which is certainly not the situation which obtains now - which is that any broomstick can win if he represents the "right party.''

Reports show that most of the candidates offering themselves as representatives of the ratepayers these days are the agents or those commonly called the "catchers'' of local MPs. These elections are all little power-games indulged in by the local Member of Parliament to build his pocket fiefdom.

These councils are meant to be the nurseries for national level political leaders. By Gad, Sir - by the looks of some of those in the running this country will require the protection of the Devas and all the Gods. There is the necessity to bring back the old ward system into local councils. Proportional Representation is often justified on the basis that Parliament must reflect the correct proportions of the national vote for each party. But when it comes to local government and real grassroots democracy, the voter must identify his "representative.'' He must know where his representative lives, he must have access to him, and he must be able to convey his grievances to him or to her.

Today, local government election posters are generally a mimicry of those at the national level in the race for not only inter-party, but also intra-party preference votes. But the ratepayers need to come into contact with these local politicians for everything from discussing road - widening projects to tackling issues relating to habitation and sanitation. Unfortunately the interaction becomes unpleasant, because what they generally get to meet are councillors on the make, and small time hangers on practising their brand of corruption to be put to better use when they graduate later onto the national political arena.

The local government system must therefore not be impersonal, but unfortunately that's what the PR system makes out of adult franchise. Most voters never knew the councillor they had voted for in the past several years since proportional representation was introduced outside the old ward system, because they usually voted for a party.
Provincial Councils have also made inroads into local administration, and local government has been made a mess of after the 13th amendment was introduced into the constitution.

The Provincial Council system has brought on unnecessary wastage of public funds and an unnecessary duplication of administrative functions. In urbania or suburbia of Sri Lanka, the common vignette is of council facilities being used by petty panjandrums and VIPs to pave their roads.

Houses have annexes mushrooming around them, because the inspectors permit the breach of any council by-law for buckshee. Private toilets are illegally diverted to public rainwater drains. Commercial buildings or industries are erected in residential areas, and the string of offences goes on in the name of democracy.

The rules are only for the honest and the law abiding. All political parties are equally responsible for this charade, so onto another exercise in democratic governance tomorrow, when the voters go to the polls in the remaining municipal and urban councils areas in the country.

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