By: Modou Touray
The Regional Community Development officer for the West Coast Region, Mr Njaga Khan, has clarified to the Village Development Committee (VDC) members of Sotokoi in Kombo east that Alkalo is the head of the village and he must be updated about the activities and projects undertaken by VDC to avoid conflict in the village.
The tension between the Alkalo and the Village Development Committee is alarming which prompted the Brikama Area Council (BAC) to clearly define their roles and responsibilities and how they could work amicably with the village heads.
“Alkalo (village head) is in charge of the village therefore any program being undertaken by the Village Development Committee, he must be consulted. That is why in the local government act, the Alkalo serves as an advisor,” Njaga Khan stated.
The fracas between the village head and the village development committee often hampers the development agenda of the village. Each of them with a faction to sabotage communal activities.
Mr Khan insisted that VDCs must be open to accountability and term limits in administration as stated in the Local Government Act 2002. According to the Local Government Act 2002, VDC executive members should be elected in which two members (male and female) from each clan (Kabilo) shall be entitled to vote and register at the Area Council.
“The Village Development Committee should be gender-sensitive, fairly elected and must be in consultation with the relevant stakeholders. If you do that, the conflict will be avoided. Your constitution must be clear on issues,” Mr Khan added.
He further asserted that the village consists of different political parties and therefore politics must be out of their activities.
Hadiatou Sarjo Jallow, a planning technician at the Brikama Area Council, highlighted that it is in the interest of the council to see that the village development committees know their mandate. “If villagers can initiate their own development projects, it will help communities,” She pointed out.
The chairman of the Sotokoi village development committee, Mr Gasper Gomez Said building their capacity will enhance their competence hence they are new in office.
“We had VDC before but they were not effective. We decided to restructure it to make it better. We are 29 members at the moment,” Mr Gomez said.
The village development committees work directly with the ward councillor who represents them at the Brikama Area Council. Honourable Bala Musa Darboe is the ward councillor for Kafuta ward in the Kombo east district and he said:
“The Alkalo consulted me two years ago to help in setting up a functional VDC because the former committee were not effective. The committee is set up now which is the development branch of the village. if there is a cordial relationship between the village head and the VDC, development with be smooth,” councillor Darboe stated.
It is a fact that for a village to realise sustainable and meaningful development, there must be a well-constituted VDC who are supposed to be watchdogs in terms of community development initiative and as such it must include people who have the charisma, transparency, impartiality and above all, represent the will of the people.
