Gbarnga, Bong County – Participants at a one-day meeting on the awareness of the Local Government Act have hailed NAYMOTE-Partners for Democratic Development for broadening their knowledge, terming the exercise as a great move.
Report by Selma Lomax, [email protected]
Over 50 participants including government officials, women groups youths, civil society organizations, and the media attended the forum at the Bong County Women Center in Gbarnga.
The Local Government Act was signed into law by President George Weah in September of 2018.
The Local Government Act awareness with support from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) an American pro-democracy institution was intended to strengthen citizens’ understanding of the legal framework of the local government act.
Giving the overview of the exercise, NAYMOTE-Partners for Democratic Development Regional Coordinator for Bong, Lofa, and Nimba, Moses Bailey, said the awareness on the Local Government Act is a one year project supported by the National Endowment for Democratic based in the U.S.
Bailey said the awareness is being done in five counties, namely; Montserrado, Nimba, Bong, Grand Gedeh and River Gee.
“Our quest as an institution is to ensure that citizens are aware of the Local Government Act and as well have access to copies of the law to help them understand the law more,” Bailey said during the Gbarnga awareness.
He said Naymote is engaging students on their campuses, civil society actors, women groups, youth, physically challenged people, local leaders, and media practitioners, among others with the awareness.
In separate interviews, participants extolled NAYMOTE-Partners for Democratic Development for the awareness and described it as a good beginning.
Mrs. Olivia Weetol, president of the Bong County Women Organization, said since the passage of the Local Government Act, this was some of the first time to have seen copy of the “Act”, noting, we have heard of the Local Government Act but we don’t really know what is in it and hope NAYMOTE and partners should take this awareness exercise to the leeward districts for our rural inhabitants.
“This one-day awareness forum on the Local Government Act actually is not enough but it has sharpened my knowledge on governance and I am going to engage my institute to ensure that we can get a copy so we teach the kids,” said Jerry Porkpah of the Gbarnga.
P. Hanson Dolo, president of the National Teacher Association Bong County Branch lauded NAYMOTE-Partners for Democratic Development for the awareness and suggested that the Local Government Act be included in the National Curriculum of the Ministry of Education and be taught at all schools within the territorial boundary of the country.
“The gathering today makes me to know and understand what really the Local Government Act is all about” an elderly man Zacharias Kpoto admitted. The District Commissioner of Jorquelleh, Washington Bonah, thanked NAYMOTE for the opportunity and then appealed to NAYMOTE-Partners for Democratic Development to take the awareness in the various local languages and the local radio stations, adding, the local government act is a very good thing for our people to know about, so please take this into the various local languages in the county.
