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Government accountability
to the people
Susana Lee
More
than 25,400 neighborhood accountability meetings of
People’s Power delegates with their electors have
taken place, as of October 21 - 95.4% of those
scheduled to date, according to Miriam Brito Sarroca,
secretary of the National Assembly.
October 21-December 21, all
municipalities across the country are
organizing neighborhood accountability meetings
between elected
People’s Power representatives and the population.
Photo: Vicente Brito
She
added that all municipalities in every province are
organizing these fourth and final meetings, mandated
for representatives elected to the XV People’s Power
term, which began in November of 2012. During the
meetings held in the country’s 14,537 electoral
precincts, People’s Power delegates and deputies
inform the population of their work and receive
feedback and proposals from citizens.
The
accountability process began October 1, and will
continue through December 21, a period during which
a total of 76,813 meetings have been planned, to
provide the population with the opportunity to
interact with their representatives, at a location
within their own neighborhood.
Brito explained that a few meetings have been
cancelled due to inclement weather, electrical
failures and organizational problems, which will be
addressed shortly, though the majority have been
held, with the participation of more than half of
district electors. She pointed out, however, that
attendance was lower in some areas of Havana and
Matanzas, and that participation in terms of
proposals from the population did not always meet
expectations.
Proposals made in meetings throughout the country,
thus far, number almost 31,000, almost half of which
can be resolved within the community itself, while
others require an administration response or
solution. Among the issues most often raised are
public lighting, the condition of streets, telephone
service, water supply, sewer issues, garbage
collection, as well as building repairs.
An
issue which National Assembly President Esteban Lazo
Hernández has emphasized is social indiscipline,
which thousands of citizens have also addressed,
identifying such problems as the proliferation of
illicit trash dumping; acts of vandalism on public
telephones and facilities; zoning violations; public
order issues, including loose animals and loud
music; as well occasional lack of cooperation with
fumigation efforts.
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