Village mayors’ offices claim right to direct allocations from state budget

The allocations from the state budget should reach the local budgets of the first level directly, not through the district councils, considers the mayor of Calfa village of Anenii Noi district. Ludmila Ceaglic has told Info-Prim Neo that the budget money intended for village mayors’ offices is often transferred with delay and thus the implementation of certain projects is postponed. The mayor said that some of the practices of including the local budgets of the first level into the local budgets of the second level lead to intervention by the district authorities in managing the local finances. There appear unofficial subordination relations that are not regulated by law. “The monthly allocations from the District Finance Division for adjusting the budgets often come with delay, depending on the interpersonal relations with them. The financial resources to the administrations of the first level should come directly from the Ministry of Finance. The District Finance Division is inefficient and bureaucratic. It provides no practical assistance,” said Ludmila Ceaglic. She also said that this two-step transfer system – to the district budgets first and then to the local budgets - is not only complicated, but also non-transparent. “The decentralization of power would allow us to do more. We are connected with many institutions that have no obligations, but burden us every day. Currently, the social assistant and chief police inspector work at the mayor’s office, but are employees of district institutions. It is a paradox because the problems should be solved our community. We cannot tell them what to do or oblige them to take attitude towards certain situations as they belong to other institutions,” stated Ludmila Ceaglic. The mayor of Calfa said the women, who in the urban areas become victims of domestic violence more often, need support, but no money is budgeted for the purpose. The allocations for culture and social assistance are insufficient and they cannot develop culture and provide support to underprivileged persons. The subject was discussed in the national conference “Role of the LPAs in Ensuring the Human Rights and Gender Equality at Local Level” that was organized by the State Chancellery within the European Local Democracy Week (October 10-16) with the support of the development partners – the Government of Sweden, UNDP, and UN Women – as part of the Joint Integrated Local Development Program. The Joint Integrated Local Development Program supports the Government of Moldova in its decentralization efforts and in the process of strengthening local autonomy and aims to ensure equal benefits for the underprivileged groups, including the discriminated, socially excluded and marginalized people, as a result of decentralization and local development.