Bhekizulu Sibanda (02/02/10)

With the Constitutional process currently underway this could be seen as a positive sign that the governing parties are committed to respecting their 2008 commitments as well as giving Zimbabwean people the opportunity to decide how they themselves wish to be governed.

As the constitutional discourse evolves, Matabeleland Constitutional Reform Agenda (Macra) chairperson, Effie Ncube has already indicated that his organization has held more than 100 meetings with people in Matabeleland province where the issue of devolution of power has taken center stage.

The question is, what is Devolution of power and is the public well informed about its implications in order for them to make meaningful contributions towards the debate?

Devolution of power has different meaning to many people. To most people devolution of power entails decentralization of public offices, to the liberal economist, devolution might mean getting rid of the dominant and over extended regulatory state and as such you get people supporting it for different reasons.

Loosely translated, devolution of power is an administrative type of decentralization. When governments devolve functions they transfer authority for decision-making, finance and management to quasi-autonomous units of local governments with corporate status.

It entails transfer of responsibilities for services to local governments that will elect their own functionaries, raise their own revenue and have independent authority to make investment decisions.

With this background, its imperative that the select committees mobilize the public so that they engage, contribute and criticize the implications of devolution of power from an informed perspective without politicizing the issue.

Pertinent points have to be addressed, power to the people without finances is not real power. It is imagined, it is not about giving people a physiological satisfaction that they are involved in governance when the whole arrangement is not sustainable.

Question of sustainability should not be ignored, are the provinces equipped to financially sustain themselves. They are arguments that financial resources can be realized through tourism, mining, timber and agriculture that lie in abundance in different provinces but the question of sustainability remains.

Sudden shifts to the regions of income and welfare functions can lead to massive social and economic dislocation which is likely to leave provincial governments with the task of maintaining social safety nets and dealing with the plight of a population hit by a severe policy backlash.

The current central government set up offers uniformity of policy and services. The centralized system is necessary in setting national standards in defining minimum requirements in areas such as education and health.

There is one set of government offices and employees for key government offices. Broader national interests take precedence resulting in balanced public policy.

Already the quasi autonomy enjoyed by local authorities has not been largely satisfactory, their modus operandi has been questionable and riddled with corruption.

Established democracies have taught that to enjoy democracy and human rights countries need not necessary be homogenous units consisting of single ethnic group. In this era of globalization people can practice their culture and enjoy their freedom based on rights enshrined in state constitutions