22 April, 2025
A typical household electric wire has a red and a white wire entwined, and separated by insulation. Exposed wires will cause a short circuit, give off spark and trip the fuse.
Governance of a city is like an electric wire.
At one hand are the leaders elected by the people. They have GOVERNANCE function. Such as the Mayor and the Ward Members.
On the other hand are the bureaucracy. They are responsible for MANAGEMENT and service delivery. Such as the Municipality Chief Executive, officers, and staff in the bureaucracy.
The two core functions - governance and management - are entwined. If those two are not properly insulated from each other, the service delivery system will trip off, and the system will crash.
At a higher level, the above separation of power between governance and management ensures that a city functions well at both its decision and delivery roles.
In a well-functioning city the jurisdictions of the two tiers are well-separated. Roles are clearly defined and enshrined in legislation to ensure they are adhered to. Most importantly, the rules are followed. For example, in the case of Auckland Council, New Zealand where I permanently reside, and have been an officer in roles advising the governing body (Policy Planner) as well as being part of the service delivery team (Senior Planner in Regulatory Planning team).
In the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (and other municipalities), the two wires are naked without any insulation to separate the governance and management functions. There seems to be no separation of jurisdiction, at least in practice. No wonder the system struggles to function even at its basic roles. Conflicts pop up like popcorn on a hot oven. The elected representatives seem to be directly involved in service delivery involving finance transactions, contracting and bidding. The bureaucracy, on the other hand, are making decisions. This is a no no and a recipe for disaster. To be a well-functioning city, there must be proper and absolute separation of power such as the red and black wires of and electric circuit.
I am aware that there were and are many good governance initiatives in Nepal. Without knowing what exactly was and is being done, until and unless we ensure that there is absolute separation of power of people in the governance and management, our fuse will keep tipping.
As an example of best practice of governance model, here is link to the webpage which explains how it works in Auckland Council.
Auckland Council is not perfect. No city is and can be. But the governance model of Auckland and New Zealand overall works. Systems and processes evolve and are improved continuously.
If anyone In KMC or elsewhere wants, I am here to share my knowledge and experience of good governance (and Urban Planning) in a local government context. More than happy to connect with people who work in the nuts and bolts of a well-functioning governance machinery.
The above post is based on my experience both in New Zealand and Nepal. I gather clues from people I meet - general public from a cross section of the society, politicians, bureaucracy apparatus, civil society members, and so on.
Posted on facebook during my Nepal visit April-May, 2025
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