During the Administrative Coordination and Security meeting overseen by North West Governor Adolf Lele Lafrique, concerns over the haphazard construction of buildings, absenteeism among civil servants and local elected officials, and instances of media manipulation took centre stage.
Governor Lafrique issued a stern warning directed at administrative authorities he deemed to be failing to serve the population adequately.
“Any civil servant with twenty-two hours of absence should be reported to the regional disciplinary board,” cautioned the governor.
The meeting also highlighted the issue of local elected officials operating outside their constituencies, some even carrying their offices in suitcases.
Expressing disapproval, Governor Lafrique criticized such behaviours, pointing out that certain political parties were now relying on media platforms for political rallies.
“A politician will film images and send them to a journalist, and they will publish them. A simple verification often indicates that those are old pictures,” remarked the governor. “This attitude is not conducive to the building we aspire to achieve.”
Convening in the municipality of Santa, the meeting featured insights from Mayor Samkie Elvis II, who emphasized that Santa has proven to be a community committed to peace, despite a noted increase in insecurity attributed to poorly maintained roads.
Vegetable transporters confirmed that their business has been adversely affected by the deteriorating road conditions, preventing direct loading of cargo trucks on farms.
“I used to go to Pinyin to load vehicles, but with insecurity due to the armed conflict and bad roads, I now depend on bike riders to transport the goods to Santa for us,” explained Muluh, a truck driver.
Road users appealed for expedited maintenance of secondary roads to enable them to contribute to alleviating food insecurity in their communities.
