By Maimuna Sey-Jawo
Ousman Muhammed Cham, the overseeing Chairman of the Brikama Area Council has reaffirmed the significance of the local government election, saying that it is of paramount importance for Gambians to elect the right people with a view to bringing meaningful development.
“I think people need to take the local government election as serious as any other election in the country. We need to elect the right people in councils so as to enable them contribute immensely towards the development of our communities and the country.
“Our mandate is to oversee the activities of the council until after election, thus we divide ourselves into two committees namely; the finance committee and the development committee with a view to enabling us understand the activities of the council in order to come out with tangible suggestion,” he stated.
Their assignment at the council, he said, was designated by the President after the councils were dissolved pending the election of the Area Councils.
The overseer of BAC said they are working tirelessly in ensuring that they improve the council in order to prepare the ground for those that are coming to take from them after the election, adding that they are working to develop a report that consist of clear recommendation for the improvement of the management of BAC.
“My priority here is to look at resource mobilization not only based on internal revenue, but also to see the possibility of how we could tap on to other resources beyond the boundary of the council. People should be committed so as to move the agenda of the council forward,” he noted.
Cham said it is significant for people to know where their taxes are going to. “There should be clear communication about what the money collected is being used for in order to ensure transparency,” he remarked.
