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Social Sciences
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Dissertation Introduction
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English (U.K.)
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Problems and Solutions of Leadership in Local Government in Czech Republic, Lithuania and Nigeria (Dissertation Introduction Sample)
Instructions:
The task was about discussing the independently the challenges that are faced by local authorities in three countries. It also involved providing independent solution to the problems and then finally comparing the problems and the solutions to the problems. P
source..Content:
Name of Student
Name of lecturer
Date of Submission
PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN CZECH REPUBLIC, LITHUANIA AND NIGERIA:
ABSTRACT:
Local governments are constituted to deliver the best services and uniquely put forth timeless changes in the lives of the locals. Being that immediate to the locals, they should play a greater role in improving the living conditions of the local citizens by possessing the biggest impact in the development index and growth curve in the locality.
These governments are not only mandated to provide essential services but also to enhance quality, efficiency and leadership. It is this leadership that is the basis of this research. Even though the local government has a full tray of what is expected of them, the elected leaders in local government have continued to experience one challenge after another.
Among the challenges that most local governments include; inadequate funds, leadership wrangles and corruption. The objective of this paper is to look into details the problems of leadership in local government in Nigeria, Lithuania and Czech Republic. The paper also aims at finding solutions to these problems. It recommends that, in order to enhance service delivery, these countries should compare their level of the local government performance with those of successful countries. They should also find a long-lasting solution to some of the challenges that they face.
PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA
Nigeria's local governments continue to face a myriad of leadership challenges which have exceled in hindering efficiency and productivity in attempts to deliver services to the people they represent. These challenges continue to hamper the development hence curtailing the main principle of local government's goals and objectives (Idada, 2010). Among the challenges that have continued to affect the country’s local government include; first is the lack of autonomy. The national government continues to control the operations of the local government thereby denying it the opportunity to deliver services to the people. Because it lacks independence, the local government must consult the government in all that it intends to do. At times, the national government declines to approve some of the projects thereby interfering with service delivery.
Secondly, the local government of Nigeria suffers from lack of managerial skills. According to Idada (2010), the chief executive officers of the local governments are political appointees who lack managerial skills. In most cases, they cannot deliver because they serve the interest of the appointing authority. Consequently, the local governments are marred by poor management and misappropriation of funds. Punishing or dismissing the corrupt officers is however difficult because they enjoy political protection.
Another problem that affects the Nigerian local government is under-funding from the national government. Despite the fact that it offers the most essential services such as education, health and water, they have always been shortchanged in funds allocation by the national government (Olasupo, 2013). Moreover, allocation of funds to the local government is influenced by the political inclination of the affected party. Lack of funds has highly hampered the activities of the local government are seriously hampered.
Power struggle among the members of the executive is another challenge that has affected the Nigerian local government. Most local governments in Nigeria suffer from distrust between the chairpersons and the vice chairpersons. The war between the two is because the elections are never free and fair. The bad blood that develops from the election ends up in the offices that they serve in. The infighting has caused a lot of tension among the officers thereby interfering with service delivery. For instance, in some cases, the chairpersons apply the divide and rule policy with the members of the executive.
SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA
All the problems that are threatening the success of local government in Nigeria have workable and reliable remedies that when fully enforced, will surely address them. Among the remedies include, instituting an effective electoral system. This will promote free and fair elections. There is also need to change electoral laws so that all the executive members of the local government officials are appointed by the people. Through this, they will be answerable to the people.
Another option that is in place is to recall all the non performing chairpersons and vice chairpersons. The electorate should be given the power through the constitution to recall all the non performing local government leaders so as to replace them with serious and committed public servants. According to Olasupo (2013), this clause- should it be enacted would influence leaders to work for the people by sticking to the manifesto of their political parties.
It is also important to have team building sessions and induction training for all the executive members and the employees of the local government agencies. Such platform would provide opportunity to all the stakeholders to understand best ways of managing the people. They will also understand the best ways to address their concerns and challenges that they face. Through capacity building, they are taken through harmony, integration and integrity in the manner and way they discharge their duties.
Workshops and seminars will help in sensitizing the leaders on how best to manage the people and colleagues while in office. The infighting and distrust as explained by Ito (2012) would be a thing of the past if such workshops and seminars were done in good faith. Personnel management is so much an important issue in the running of any work force - and sidelining it is the other way of sidelining both personal growth and development of a government.
Finally, there is need to change the constitution so as to make the local government autonomous in Nigeria. .The decisions and activities of the local government should not be influenced by the central government whatsoever. This will make it possible for the local governments to have the responsibility of charting their own path and making decisions that are significant to their people (Ito, 2013). Such an autonomous declaration must be captured in the constitution in order to block any other national leader or government agency from watering it down.
PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN LITHUANIA
Even as democracy develops in Lithuania, the general public has not really grasped the opportunity to engage their local leaders on issues touching on their welfare. The citizens are hardly engaged on matters of their interest and public life. The local government in Lithuania continues to face myriad of problems that include; firstly, lack of platform to share views on how to handle issues that are affecting the local governments. The local government's way and manner of leadership could is characterized with bureaucracy and high handedness. Consequently, the people have no opportunity to present their memoranda on what they want their local government leaders to address.
Lack of lack of mutual trust and transparency is another problem that the local government of Lithuania faces. Effective and transparent communication is a serious leadership challenge facing the local government of Lithuania. The local authorities and the local communities do not have effective and working engagement channels. Therefore, the people tend to follow individual interests and not public goals or intentions. This only leaves the local government with the option of consulting and engaging the specific interest groups on matters touching on the citizens they govern (Mercy, 2013).
The locals are also deprived of information they should access to inform their decision on a wide range of issues. The language and form of data are hardly understood or rather comprehensible to any ordinary citizen. Interestingly, even their own website of public information, despite being visited by the citizens to source for information, has never achieved much to that respect.
Corruption is another problem that continues to affect the operations of the Lithuanian Local government (Vajdova, 2008). The agencies are riddled with corrupt activities that have significantly affected the level of service delivery. It is believed that the local government officers undertake their responsibilities and duties not for local public interest but for their own private goals and interests. They pocket a lot of public funds and even require bribes in order to deliver services.
SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN LITHUANIA
In order to overcome these challenges, first, there is need to organize workshops for local government leaders. Through this, the leaders will get an opportunity to learn new ideas and also to engage each other mutually. During such workshops, the enhancement of integration of anti-corruption education and social partnership should be handled. It will also make local government leaders to be sensitive to their role of fighting graft and enhancing service delivery.
Another remedy is to organize a forum with the youth leaders and the general public so that they can give their opinions on how to handle the challenges. According to Vajdova (2008), such a forum will also build the public confidence on the activities of the agency. The leaders will also learn on the services that they need to prioritize.
There is also need to put in place strong, honest, accountable leadership. The constitution should be structured in such a manner that, it every leader is responsible for his actions while in office. Local government leaders must embrace the inward focus and not only the outward ...
Name of lecturer
Date of Submission
PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN CZECH REPUBLIC, LITHUANIA AND NIGERIA:
ABSTRACT:
Local governments are constituted to deliver the best services and uniquely put forth timeless changes in the lives of the locals. Being that immediate to the locals, they should play a greater role in improving the living conditions of the local citizens by possessing the biggest impact in the development index and growth curve in the locality.
These governments are not only mandated to provide essential services but also to enhance quality, efficiency and leadership. It is this leadership that is the basis of this research. Even though the local government has a full tray of what is expected of them, the elected leaders in local government have continued to experience one challenge after another.
Among the challenges that most local governments include; inadequate funds, leadership wrangles and corruption. The objective of this paper is to look into details the problems of leadership in local government in Nigeria, Lithuania and Czech Republic. The paper also aims at finding solutions to these problems. It recommends that, in order to enhance service delivery, these countries should compare their level of the local government performance with those of successful countries. They should also find a long-lasting solution to some of the challenges that they face.
PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA
Nigeria's local governments continue to face a myriad of leadership challenges which have exceled in hindering efficiency and productivity in attempts to deliver services to the people they represent. These challenges continue to hamper the development hence curtailing the main principle of local government's goals and objectives (Idada, 2010). Among the challenges that have continued to affect the country’s local government include; first is the lack of autonomy. The national government continues to control the operations of the local government thereby denying it the opportunity to deliver services to the people. Because it lacks independence, the local government must consult the government in all that it intends to do. At times, the national government declines to approve some of the projects thereby interfering with service delivery.
Secondly, the local government of Nigeria suffers from lack of managerial skills. According to Idada (2010), the chief executive officers of the local governments are political appointees who lack managerial skills. In most cases, they cannot deliver because they serve the interest of the appointing authority. Consequently, the local governments are marred by poor management and misappropriation of funds. Punishing or dismissing the corrupt officers is however difficult because they enjoy political protection.
Another problem that affects the Nigerian local government is under-funding from the national government. Despite the fact that it offers the most essential services such as education, health and water, they have always been shortchanged in funds allocation by the national government (Olasupo, 2013). Moreover, allocation of funds to the local government is influenced by the political inclination of the affected party. Lack of funds has highly hampered the activities of the local government are seriously hampered.
Power struggle among the members of the executive is another challenge that has affected the Nigerian local government. Most local governments in Nigeria suffer from distrust between the chairpersons and the vice chairpersons. The war between the two is because the elections are never free and fair. The bad blood that develops from the election ends up in the offices that they serve in. The infighting has caused a lot of tension among the officers thereby interfering with service delivery. For instance, in some cases, the chairpersons apply the divide and rule policy with the members of the executive.
SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA
All the problems that are threatening the success of local government in Nigeria have workable and reliable remedies that when fully enforced, will surely address them. Among the remedies include, instituting an effective electoral system. This will promote free and fair elections. There is also need to change electoral laws so that all the executive members of the local government officials are appointed by the people. Through this, they will be answerable to the people.
Another option that is in place is to recall all the non performing chairpersons and vice chairpersons. The electorate should be given the power through the constitution to recall all the non performing local government leaders so as to replace them with serious and committed public servants. According to Olasupo (2013), this clause- should it be enacted would influence leaders to work for the people by sticking to the manifesto of their political parties.
It is also important to have team building sessions and induction training for all the executive members and the employees of the local government agencies. Such platform would provide opportunity to all the stakeholders to understand best ways of managing the people. They will also understand the best ways to address their concerns and challenges that they face. Through capacity building, they are taken through harmony, integration and integrity in the manner and way they discharge their duties.
Workshops and seminars will help in sensitizing the leaders on how best to manage the people and colleagues while in office. The infighting and distrust as explained by Ito (2012) would be a thing of the past if such workshops and seminars were done in good faith. Personnel management is so much an important issue in the running of any work force - and sidelining it is the other way of sidelining both personal growth and development of a government.
Finally, there is need to change the constitution so as to make the local government autonomous in Nigeria. .The decisions and activities of the local government should not be influenced by the central government whatsoever. This will make it possible for the local governments to have the responsibility of charting their own path and making decisions that are significant to their people (Ito, 2013). Such an autonomous declaration must be captured in the constitution in order to block any other national leader or government agency from watering it down.
PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN LITHUANIA
Even as democracy develops in Lithuania, the general public has not really grasped the opportunity to engage their local leaders on issues touching on their welfare. The citizens are hardly engaged on matters of their interest and public life. The local government in Lithuania continues to face myriad of problems that include; firstly, lack of platform to share views on how to handle issues that are affecting the local governments. The local government's way and manner of leadership could is characterized with bureaucracy and high handedness. Consequently, the people have no opportunity to present their memoranda on what they want their local government leaders to address.
Lack of lack of mutual trust and transparency is another problem that the local government of Lithuania faces. Effective and transparent communication is a serious leadership challenge facing the local government of Lithuania. The local authorities and the local communities do not have effective and working engagement channels. Therefore, the people tend to follow individual interests and not public goals or intentions. This only leaves the local government with the option of consulting and engaging the specific interest groups on matters touching on the citizens they govern (Mercy, 2013).
The locals are also deprived of information they should access to inform their decision on a wide range of issues. The language and form of data are hardly understood or rather comprehensible to any ordinary citizen. Interestingly, even their own website of public information, despite being visited by the citizens to source for information, has never achieved much to that respect.
Corruption is another problem that continues to affect the operations of the Lithuanian Local government (Vajdova, 2008). The agencies are riddled with corrupt activities that have significantly affected the level of service delivery. It is believed that the local government officers undertake their responsibilities and duties not for local public interest but for their own private goals and interests. They pocket a lot of public funds and even require bribes in order to deliver services.
SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS OF LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN LITHUANIA
In order to overcome these challenges, first, there is need to organize workshops for local government leaders. Through this, the leaders will get an opportunity to learn new ideas and also to engage each other mutually. During such workshops, the enhancement of integration of anti-corruption education and social partnership should be handled. It will also make local government leaders to be sensitive to their role of fighting graft and enhancing service delivery.
Another remedy is to organize a forum with the youth leaders and the general public so that they can give their opinions on how to handle the challenges. According to Vajdova (2008), such a forum will also build the public confidence on the activities of the agency. The leaders will also learn on the services that they need to prioritize.
There is also need to put in place strong, honest, accountable leadership. The constitution should be structured in such a manner that, it every leader is responsible for his actions while in office. Local government leaders must embrace the inward focus and not only the outward ...
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