A REVIEW OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE AND PRACTICES WITHIN THE CARIBBEAN
Introduction and Structure Local Government in Bahamas
Countries all over the world have a body or group of bodies that facilitate in the governance of these states. These bodies form the governments that have structures and policies that assist them to function appropriately. The Caribbean countries have organized structures that help its citizens to understand how policies that govern them are made. The Caribbean region is comprised of islands that surround the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean and there are over 700 islands. The islands are located to the east of Central America, north of South America and to the southeast of the Gulf of Mexico and North America. They are considered to be a sub-region of North America. Some of these islands are sovereign states while others are still colonies. The Caribbean Islands include The Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint John, Dominican Republic, Saint Thomas, Montserrat, Grenada, Tortola, Saint Vincent, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Hispaniola and Trinidad & Tobago. Majority of the people in the Caribbean are mainly of the African ancestry with a minority comprising of the European and East Indian origins. The Caribbean sub-region has utilized a range of administrative structures in their pursuit for good governance, growth and development. These administrative structures include local government system, decentralization, citizen participation and Ombudsmanship. However, this paper attempts to study the effectiveness of the local government administrative system in the Bahamas. The analysis will focus on the overall objectives, strengths, weaknesses and challenges within the local government structure.
Local governments are structures set at local levels to perform the functions of the central governments. They are established structures of governance put in place to bring government services closer to the people. In other words, these structures are authorized by the central government and empowered by the constitution to perform certain duties on behalf of the central government. For example, duties like revenue collection at the local levels are coordinated by the local administration. It is important to note that different countries have different systems of administration at local levels depending on the nature of the constitution. For effective administration at the local levels, local authorities derive power from the constitution and are allowed to have their own set of rules and regulation in compliance with the national constitution.
Local government administrative structures were expanded in the Caribbean after World War II as part of what was recommended in the West Indian Commission report led by Lord Moyne (Great Britain, 1945, p. 12). Notably, it was until 1996 that the local government structures were enacted in the Bahamas through an Act of Parliament. Initially, the local government structure established comprised of 23 district councils. These districts were however increased to 31 following an amendment in 1999.There are one hundred and ten councilors and two hundred and eighty-one town committee members to support these councils. The leaders of these councils, who are elected after every three years, oversee the running of these councils without intervention of the Central government. These local governments are mainly financed by the central government and are accountable for the upkeep of harbors, hospitals, state schools, public transportation, roads, public transportation, parks buildings, provision of water and development of youth and culture.
Objectives of the Local Governments
The local authorities are set with the aim of achieving certain purposes. The objectives of these local governments include:
i. To provide effective and efficient services to the Bahamians. This is the central objective as the local governments are to ensure the locals are provided with high quality services at a cheaper price. The system is aimed at bringing the Bahamians closer to the government. In other words, they are meant to devolve the central services in order to serve the people according to the level of needs of the people served. Local governments are closer to the people and are, therefore, in a position to identify the problems faced at local levels, seek support from the central government and put up effective measures.
ii. To offer platforms for active political participation. The local governments are to broaden the democratic process. The Bahamians no longer accept choices made by their leaders on their behalf. As proposed by King and Stoker, the local authorities will be of great benefit as they will create forums that will help the masses to voice their grievances and needs (King and Stoker, 1996). These forums will enable the local authorities in place to understand how the local citizens want to be governed.
iii. To manage local affairs and to promote institutional capacity building.The local governments will conduct training sessions that will be geared towards enhancing professionalism, performance and technical competence. They will support the capacity to solve societal issues and promote good governance among other institutions if successful.
iv. To provide a link between the people and the central government. The local administrators are charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the grievances, needs and issues affecting the locals reach the central government. This objective is based on the forums that are created as discussed in objective number (ii) above.
Strengths of Local Government
The local authorities set in the Bahamas, though faced with a number of challenges, have certain capacities, systems and structures that enable them to meet their objectives. There are enormous advantages that come with the local government system of administration. Firstly, the local governments are beneficial in that they provide services that are efficient and effective. This is because the local governments enjoy economies of scale, and there is an effective utilization of trained manpower. The natural resources and manpower available are also properly utilized
Moreover, through forums like Town Hall meetings, the locals are involved in decision making processes and are able to raise their grievances to the local authorities. The modern population is not ready to take policies just as they are come, they are adamant, and they question virtually everything. These governments help in providing opportunities for the ordinary citizens to be actively involved in the decision making process. King and Stoker (1996, p.7) assert that through the forums like the Town Hall meetings, the local governments are able to understand what the society needs and what bedevils it (King and Stoker, 1996, p. 7). This concept has led to the provision of standard services by the local authorities and serves as a relief to the central government that is responsible for policy making. Furthermore, this administrative system has led to the growth of a powerful cadre of political, administrative and operational leadership at the grassroots level (Finer, 1945, p. 4). The local citizens are actively involved in the political arena and the policy making process. Manning, in his report, clearly states that local governments system promotes democracy, it grants the citizens opportunities to be involved in the process of decision making, and it empowers them over their surroundings ( Manning P., 2006, p. 376). In addition, these local governments manage public funds, and they prepare the budgets at the local level. Also, this practice of governance enhances competencies and skills in various crucial sectors of the economy like entrepreneurship, project management, financial management, coalition building and social mobilization.
The system promotes effective leadership and organizational capacities among both the governmental and non-governmental entities as it facilitates accountability (Chandler, 2001, p. 10).Through the local government system, the Bahamian central government has recorded considerable developmental changes in the transport and communications sectors the most remote areas. The local governments are at the grassroots level, and they understand the transportation and communications needs of the local citizens, and they work relentlessly towards satisfying them. This system promotes political stability within Bahamas. The local governments deal with contentious issues that would otherwise been dealt with the central government creating tension in the country.
This form of governance encourages the separation of power and discourages dictatorship (Armstrong, 1999, p. 5). The local governments in place keep the central government on check, ensuring that they function independently. This aspect facilitates good governance and promotes liberty. Moreover, through this system; the central government has the opportunity of dealing with more important issues affecting the Bahamians. It has more time to deal with emerging national and international matters while the local governments are handling issues affecting the citizens in their localities within the country (Local Governance Resource Center (LGRC), 2005, p. 8).
Weaknesses of Local Government System
The local government system in the Bahamas, just like any other government systems, has its weakness. There are a number of factors that may make it be termed as a failure. To begin with, the local governments do not engage in local initiatives. The central government fully supports the local governments in terms of finances (Mill, 1993, p. 117). This dependency on the central government of finances is a limitation in the implementation of their projects. These local authorities are not encouraged to engage in local incentives to raise more funds for the growth and development of their localities.
Secondly, there is a lack of accountability in most local governments. The aspects of embezzlement, misuse and misappropriation are clearly evident within the local structures.The local system of governance has a team of incompetent administrators. These leaders are non-performing, egocentric, and they lack vital problem solving skills. They are after satisfying their own needs, and filling their own pockets. In other words, there is a problem of corruption.
Another weakness is the idea of having several policies aimed at addressing the same problem. There is the possibility of confusion arising, as a result, of having many policies addressing the same issue. There are 32 districts in the country having different policies but on the same matter. Moreover, this system may result to lack of accountability. The overlay of boundary between the central government and the local governments makes it hard to blame either of the two bodies in case of failure.
Additionally, there is the possibility of services being duplicated. Some services provided at the national level are the same ones provided at the grassroots levels. This duplication causes an immense strain on the economy. The local governments are mandated to initiate their own projects. However, whenever there is no proper communication with the central government, some services and projects become duplicated.
Another characteristic that makes the local governments system to be deemed as a failure is that the local governments are likely to collide with the central governments as they may come up with laws that go contrary to what the central government has in place (Finer, 1945, p. 23). As a result, an estranged relationship will be evoked between the two governing bodies hampering service delivery and good governance. Furthermore, chances are high that supremacy battles between the central government and the local governments may crop up. The of these power struggles is that the process of implementation of policies at both the national and local levels will be derailed. Besides, this administrative has made it difficult to differentiate between the national concerns and the local concerns. This aspect inconveniences the locals as number of issues assigned to the local authorities is small compared to the real issues affecting the locals.
Challenges facing the Local Governments
Despite its success, the local government system in the Bahamas faces a number of challenges. The predicament facing the local governments in the Bahamas is common with other Caribbean states that have embraced this form of governance (Manning, 2008, p. 798). First, there is the fear of all the policies being over centralized and the system being made inferior.The central government is of the opinion that all revenue collected should be pooled together. It is feared that this policy will deny the local governments a chance to govern their councils without the intervention of the central government and make them financially dependent. They will simply be implementing what has already been agreed upon at the national level and not be able to make their own decisions.
Secondly, there is the challenge of having incompetent administrators. This system consists of leaders who are elected into power. Due to political divide, most of the elected leaders may not be oriented towards the achievement and the success of their societies. Some of the administrators are egocentric, non-performing, sycophants, corrupt and perpetrators of injustices. They are not involved in the growth and development process in their localities.It is difficult to have a smooth running of the local government affairs when the leaders are non-performers. Most local have not been able to achieve their objectives due to the type of leaders who get into power. In most cases, the leaders are more concerned about their political interest and partisan politics that does not promote unity and development at the local levels.
Additionally, there is the issue of ethnic bigotry. There are different ethnic groups in the Bahamas and this promotes supremacy battles. Such struggles deprive some people a chance to express their arguments (Chandler, 2001, p. 10).The country is dominated by two main political parties with different ideologies. Different people hold different ideologies on the contemporary issues affecting the society. These ideological differences pose a huge challenge on the local authorities. The process of implementation of policies is, therefore, faced with opposition from the group that holds converse opinion. The tension between the Haitians and Bahamians gives the local authorities sleepless nights. Probabilities of ethnic violence erupting are very high. An ever increasing number of Haitian immigrants and migrants from other Caribbean countries in the country poses a strain on the available limited resources and a backlog to the economy. This feature gives the local authorities a real hard time during the budgeting process. To most people, serving in the local government is the last thing they could ever do. The career line is not as attractive as serving in the central government, and this becomes a problem to the local authorities since there is limited skilled manpower. Available resources have an enormous impact on the process of policy implementation.
Another challenge to the local governments in Bahamas is the inadequate economic resources and the inability to source qualified personnel and skilled manpower to serve at the local level. Most of the local governments in the Bahamas have limited resources compared to the number of people being served (Ragoonath, 2004, p. 15). As mentioned earlier in the discourse, most of the regions are faced with the ever increasing numbers of immigrants. The budgeting and planning process is, therefore, very difficult. Besides, there is a difficulty in securing qualified staff. The number of individuals at grassroots level with skills and expertise necessary for the utilization of these resources is very low. Limited resources and how they are utilized are viewed by the local authorities as hindrances to the growth and development of these local governments.
The aspect of globalization is another challenge facing the local authorities in that citizens try to compare how they are governed with how the rest of the world is governed. Globalization too has facilitated the penetration of other foreign cultures into the country influencing the consumption modes and lifestyles. The local leadership, therefore, finds it hard to satisfy a population that has acquired new economic, cultural and social norms with the old policies. The world has become a global village where there is free interaction and sharing of ideas. It is important to underscore that the rate of globalization and the desire to acquire foreign policies is a great challenge to the local governments.
Natural and man-made calamities also impede the process of development in the local districts. These calamities range from global warming to earthquakes and hurricanes. Hurricanes are common in this region, and they pose serious constraints to the process of implementation of policies. It is unfortunate that some of the structures and infrastructure get destroyed in the even to of earthquakes and hurricanes. Most local governments, therefore, fear putting up development structures due the danger of natural catastrophes.
Recommendations
Local governments are very important and need to be made more effective to serve the need of the people in a better way. Due to the challenges and weaknesses faced by the Local Governments in Bahamas, the flowing recommendations can be made:
• There is need to ensure accountability and transparency in the utilization of the resources allocated. The local governments need to have checks and balances on the use of the available resources. Proper auditing of the accounts is necessary
• The local governments should be given the powers to have their own sources of revenue to supplement what they receive form the central government. This will help in reducing the dependency on the central governments
• There is need to shun political ambitions and differences while serving at the local governments. The leaders need to ensure that people are united at all levels. Development can only be fulfilled through the creation of a common focus
• Legal Local governments need to work in liaison with the central government to help in controlling the rates of immigrations into the local governments without following the legal procedures
When these recommendations are effectively implemented, the local governments will be capable of exercising their duties more efficiently and effectively to befit the citizens.
Bibliography
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Mill, J., 1993. Considerations on Representative Government. In: G. Williams, ed. Utilitarianism; On Liberty; Considerations on Representative Government,. London: J.M. Dent, pp. 114-118.
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