Governors in developed countries have great powers

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TRADITIONALLY in Kuwait, governors and mayors are appointed for some interests, and also as a reward for serving the country for a long period. This is why their position has become largely ceremonial, except for those who worked to fulfill their role and supervise some work in their governorates, but these were few in number and they did not have the opportunity to continue their work.

The governors often seek the assistance of advisors and employees for the sake of honor and prestige. Their luxurious offices are intended for the protocol and are nothing more than diwaniyas. On the other hand, in most countries of the world, a governor is considered a provincial or rather a local ruler with several powers, and with a team that works on ensuring the availability of all necessary facilities and services, as well as the public security.

For example, in Saudi Arabia, the provincial council or region addresses service-related issues of a local nature, which helps reduce the burden on the central apparatus. In the Sultanate of Oman, a governor’s powers include ensuring the implementation of the rule of law, protecting the interests of the state, enhancing its prestige, developing and investing in the governorate’s resources and promoting them to achieve sustainable development and create job opportunities for citizens, and working to benefit from the various components of the governorate.

The situation is the same in France where a governor is a local ruler who heads the provincial council, supervises all affairs of the province and its budget, and works in consultation with its council to impose tariffs on services. If the need arises, he also represents the state in concluding contracts for governorate projects.

In other words, he is the head of the local authority in the state’s decentralized system. In some countries, a governor is a representative of the executive authority in the governorate. He is responsible for supervising the implementation of the state’s general policy and following up the development plan’s projects in his governorate. He also has the authority to choose overseas study missions for those residing in his governorate in order to ensure the availability of the specializations his province needs.

One of the governor’s duties is also to supervise the maintenance of infrastructure. He has a budget collected from the fees charged to provide services, such as road maintenance, garbage collection, and some aesthetic aspects. In many countries, the powers of a governor are defined as following up the implementation of laws and administrative regulations in a way that ensures achieving the public interest, studying the grievances and complaints he receives from citizens, contacting the relevant authorities to facilitate obtaining the necessary information regarding their solution or proposing an appropriate solution for them, and notifying citizens of the response of the authorities in their respective cases. Some of them also work to receive citizens’ transactions, refer them to the concerned government agencies, and follow up on them.

All of this has not been done for decades in Kuwait. This is why the role of governors declined, and became limited to administrative work in their offices only. As a local governor, he must be following up all the affairs of his province or rather constituency both during and outside work hours. If necessary, he works day and night. This is why the idea of developing the role of governors is very important, especially in Kuwait, which currently needs to exert every effort to get out of the impasse of decline that it has been suffering from for years. We have been calling for activation of the role of governors and mayors for some time now. All of these authorities have great potential if they are used correctly. They can become beehives that produce sustainable development. However, if left as it is, it becomes a burden on public funds and the state, and is of no use. Thank you for the directives of our Amir in this regard, as we are witnessing a blessed renaissance.

By Ahmed Al-Jarallah
Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times
[email protected]

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