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by E.WEERAPPERUMA

Colombo Mayor elect Prasanna Gunawardena promised a vibrant green city, pleasant to live and work for both the city dweller and to those who come to the city of Colombo for work and numerous other needs.

Speaking to the "Sunday Observer" at his residence in Kirulapane Mr. Gunawardene said that his priorities will be to establish a level of management at the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) that is necessary to satisfactorily and efficiently respond to the day to day problems faced by the citizens.

While ascertaining that Colombo city has experienced a rapid and complex change with the globalisation in post 1977 UNP times, he said that the CMC has certain obligations towards the people and the country. It has certain services to perform which the citizens are entitled to and also ensure that the Council maintains infrastructure facilities and provide services with a much improved management practices to a level that could satisfactorily fulfil such obligations.

The problems that affect our day to day lives are manifold. Most of them are perceived as critical and therefore urgent. The urgency however defers depending on the locality. In some areas of higher amenity, flooding of roadways during torrential rains, undeveloped access roads, and public nuisances are of higher priority. In the more densely populated such as slum gardens and shanty areas the priorities are different. For the business community car parking is a major issue. Commuters want improvement in transport. Such and other problems that affect the day to day lives of citizens.

While these are either localised or community based there are yet other problems which are those of individual nature. But all these are problems whether they are locality based or of individual nature there is significant frustration among the citizens due to the absence of system approach must be looked into and resolved. Pressing problems are not dealt with care, or concern, or due priority, he said.

The Municipality had to bear the brunt for the defaults on the part of many state agencies directly responsible for the main functions. They have been lackadaisical, dictating affairs without neither concern nor respect for the citizens' needs nor views and requirements' of the Mayor and the Council.

" A good measure of the blame however lies also with the municipality for not being organised to deal with full responsibility for all matters which affect the day to day lives of the citizens irrespective of to whom such responsibilities are assigned through governmental arrangements", he conceded.

The perception is that there is neither professionalism nor equity in the approach of the municipality in dealing with the day to day problems of the people, recognising that to be the `key' in finding solution to the problems." The challenge therefore is to establish and sustain systems based practices in providing municipal services, which would thereby also ensure equity in municipal practices", Mr. Gunawardena said. In finding solution to problems and provide a better service we also need to get the support of the city dwellers.

For this reason we need to get the people participation:, " a participatory involvement" of the city dwellers and citizen groups in the projects and programs. " While it is so, there is also the need for the CMC top management to review and re-identify their responsibilities, duties and tasks towards a program of highly involved and sustained action to ensure that the city is clean and orderly. They also would have to take citizens into their trust and confidence, provide them opportunities to participate in reviewing and resolving matters affect their daily lives", Mr.Gunawardena added. He said that the people living in a certain locality should be informed of officials who are involved or responsible in carrying out the programs or projects such as cleaning up roads or drains, collection of garbage or street lights. They then would be able to get the services done satisfactorily. The whole idea is to see that the people in the city feel happy.

If the system is not working to the satisfaction of the rate-payers, they have all the right to inform the relevant authorities or to the Mayor directly. This type of involvement of the people or groups is something I consider, an important component of management practice. There are many sectors very important to communities, depending on where they live. In some areas collection of garbage-or solid waste. In some areas the services may be satisfactory and in other it may not be so.

" During my campaign I tried to identify the problems and I am aware that I have a fair job of work in identifying them and I found that most of them arose from the lack of a proper system. We can sort them out by applying a proper system in operation.

I consider these are some of my priorities and establishing a level of management will give a new look to the city".

Minister Karu Jayasuriya as Mayor of Colombo had very vital new dimension which in my view came about because of his entrepreneur back ground. At that time the CMC got a corporate plan due to his vision, coming from a corporate background.

In my case as a planner, it is reasonable that I bring in a new dimension of physical-restructuring of the city like every other city depicts its structure social zones. In a modern city particularly driven by open economy and with great affluence coming in- through development such patterns are subjected to changes/transformations. Slum areas have been restructured to be pleasant neighbourhood. in short what I look forward to is making this city a neat and orderly green city where people have live and work in harmony", he said.

I have worked over 15 years under the UNP regime as a public officer in Urban development and I identify the legitimate expectations of the people. The policy at the time had been that every development activity that effects people should be carried out in consultation with the people. Particulary those projects which affected and ensuring that the affected people benefit from the development work. In short, development means keeping individuals and groups happy.

I have experience in dealing with shanty communities during my career at Urban Development Authority and I was a member of the National Housing Development Authority. What I found was that the good practice of the government of the UNP, which was based on participatory development program with shanty communities .

This was abandoned with the change of government in 1994 without replacement by alternative strategies in the elimination of shanties and in dealing with shanty community.

I propose to establish a participatory methodology improving community action-plan that achieved tremendous success during the Premadasa regime. In short the residents and the community leaders in shanty areas would work with municipal and government officers to identify problems and draw up solutions.

People's proposals will be taken into serious consideration in developing the city.

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