Local mess

Purna Bahadur Thapa/Maheshwor Rijal

Village Development Committees in Nepal function, in principle, as the decentralized local governance bodies working at the grassroots, which are also taken as leading development agents. But in absence of elected local bodies since 2002, VDC secretaries have been working as chairpersons with executive authority in these bodies. But their working modalities are not people-friendly thus victimizing the very people whom they aim to serve. The prolonged absence of elected representative, abuse of public authority and misuse of development budgets has hindered the pace of development. As the VDC secretaries do not carry out their duties responsibly, there is no good governance in the local bodies. This article attempts to explore the existing scenario of corruption, and unethical behavior at VDC offices.

Integrity refers to being honest and trustworthy. This comprises moral consciousness and loyalty to one’s own values. Local bodies need people guided by this principle but there is conspicuous lack of such people. It is obvious that VDCs have been receiving millions of budget from the government, which is increasing every year. It is VDC secretaries who are responsible for overall planning and budgeting of development activities and programs. However, in absence of elected representatives and civil servants, VDC secretaries have to work both in the capacity of people’s representatives and the managers and administrators. This has created fertile ground for corruption. Collusion among the political parties to misuse the local budget has made the situation even worse.

There is nominal development outcome despite huge money funneled for village development. Yet nobody seems to care. As VDC secretaries represent the government, they are least accountable to people. They misuse social security allowance by producing fake data of the dead and migrated people. Most graft cases are related with local bodies. Commission for Investigation and Abuse of Authority (CIAA) report shows 11,000 corruption cases related with local bodies.
Rising corruption at the local bodies has frustrated local youths. They see going abroad as the only escape from this mess. Thus corrupt officials not only corrupt the national resource, but also erode working environment for country’s youths. We are backward in development because of lack of dedicated and loyal personnel. If we cannot change the situation, we will remain backward forever.

Government of Nepal has adopted policy of zero tolerance on corruption. But this has not been practiced on the ground. Corruption is rampant in local bodies though there are a number of Acts and Regulations in place to discourage grafts. Prevention of Corruption Act, 2002, and National Anti-corruption Strategy 2009 highlight the need for preventing corruption in the public sector. The government has made the provision of social audit, financial audit and public hearing in the local bodies to ensure transparency and accountability. CIAA has also been filing cases against the wrongdoers. But nothing has stopped corruption at the local level. So what should be done?

We believe that we need to develop absolute integrity and trustworthiness in local officers.

Integrity in local actors is vital. Thus it is time to use this moral tool which link with the individual belief, values and ethics as a tool to fight graft. VDC secretaries should stop supporting political parties and political parties should stop interfering in VDC work. Developing moral values alone may not be able to abolish graft in the local bodies but it will surely have positive outcomes. For the permanent solution, however, we must hold the election of the local bodies at the earliest and fill the vacuum.

Meanwhile, it is also vital to have men with integrity, self-commitment and proven dedication at the local bodies. This should be the first step towards creating a corruption-free society. This can also be the means of making vital services available to the people in the remote areas.

Thapa is M Phil scholar at Kathmandu University and Rijal Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist at KIRDARC-Nepal