Citizen Nades | theSundaily
Right to know, wrong to hide
Posted on 1 December 2013 - 07:38pm
"Councils spend public money. The money comes from national and local taxes – as well as charges to users of services. Councils have a special responsibility to tell local residents and taxpayers how they spend your money. They do that by publishing yearly accounts and details of their spending.
"Council accounts are the financial statements that most organisations have to produce at the end of the year – a balance sheet and summary of income and expenditure. But the term also covers all related documents used to make up the council's accounts and any report by the external auditor about how the council organises itself to conduct its business.
"As a local resident, or interested party, you have legal rights which let you inspect your council's accounts and related documents, ask questions about the accounts, and object to them."
Preamble in Council accounts: A guide to your rights published by the UK Audit Commission.
LET us accept the fact that all of us have to pay rates or assessment or cukai pintu as it is commonly called. They go to the local council to pay for the services it provides – maintenance of waterways, roads, playgrounds and the like.
This is a fair proposition because you have to pay for services.
Let us also accept the fact that rates are NOT the only source of income to the council. It also gets revenue from parking, licence fees and revenue from its property which are often leased to third parties.
In an ideal situation, the council will try to increase non-rate revenue by proper use of resources on such matters and not burden the ratepayer. Rate increase should be used as a last resort.
By implementing prudent financial management systems, the council will be able to cut waste – for example, by eliminating lop-sided privatisation agreements, and having open procurement policies, to eliminate middlemen and tendering agents.
This is applicable not just to Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) which is involved in a brouhaha with residents over an impending increase in rates. It applies to every local council and no one will have reason to complain if the increase is commensurate with an increase in efficiency and service.
Because councils including DBKL are so secretive of their spending and procurement processes, the ratepayers have a right to feel aggrieved. If councils open their books and explain the expenditure, the people who dig deep into their pockets will understand the need for more money.
Instead, DBKL insisted that members of Parliament who wanted to discuss the rate increase sign a confidentiality clause under the Official Secrets Act. This further aggravated the situation as there is a need for people's money to be accounted for.
This brings us to the rights of ratepayers (as outlined above). While in university in Chelmsford in 1996 in UK, we were exempted from council tax because all occupants of the rented house were students.
However when staying and working as theSun's UK correspondent in London three years ago, the London Borough of Redbridge council put me on "Band E" which necessitated a princely sum of £1,582 in annual rates, made through 12 monthly instalments. While rental value is one factor, they also took into account that three adults were occupying the house.
On registering as a resident, I was given a booklet outlining among other issues, how the rate is collected and where the money goes. Much later, when the council put an advertisement in the local newspaper that its accounts are open for inspection and scrutiny, yours truly could not resist testing the system.
In front of me were the set of accounts and supporting documents. They included, among others, an inventory of assets and cash flow statements, salaries of the executives, its interests in private companies and its investment in unit trusts.
What caught my eye was a high expenditure which was classified as "translation services" to which I got a valid explanation.
"We provide advice and services in more than 20 languages for which we pay translators and interpreters," said the officer who then produced a leaflet which listed down the various languages – from Arabic to Urdu.
On the local front, there is so much secrecy about expenditure and we need to know why the need for such a policy? It gives the impression that there is some form of concealment or a plot to use ratepayers' money for clandestine operations.
Naturally, when there is no rationalisation and validation for expenditure, Joe Public has a right to demand for substantiation. This has not been forthcoming, save terse statements which contribute little to appease aggrieved parties who rightfully claim that they are being victimised.
Before our local councillors call their travel agent to book a first-class flight to London on a lawatan sambil belajar, they should go to this link: http://www.redbridge.gov.uk
If all the details listed on this site are provided by our local councils, there will be less hassle and every right-thinking Malaysian will pay without protest. Opening up and being accountable is the only option for not only local councils but every government department and agency funded by taxpayers' money.
R. Nadeswaran believes every resident must be given an opportunity to question the income and expenditure statements of local councils. Comments: citizen-nades@thesundaily.com
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