The 70/30 Split!

J. Roughan

25 June 2009

Honiara  

 

Since 1978 Central Government--Parliamentarians, Ministries, Public Servants, the whole Central Government apparatus--has managed to absorb the lions' share of national revenue, overseas aid, development funds and wealth creation. In other words, the system that has governed the Solomons for more than 30 years, has seen more than seven dollars out of every ten ending up in the hands of a few.

 

A fairly strong argument can be made that the basic, root cause of our recent Social Unrest period--1998-2003--can be traced back to this unfair system. Of course misguided development practices, poor leadership patterns, corruption, land issues, etc. played their part. But those who brought little to the leadership table--poor formal education, thin experience successfully running local businesses and little by way of national resource wealth, have become, through an electoral process, the major benefactors of national wealth.

 

For example, the annual average revenue given to the nine Provinces between the years 1995-2000 (a five year period) was $96.6 million out of a national annual average of $336.3 million; this has resulted in a vertical split of 29% to the Provinces and 71% to Central Government. People across this island national felt this unfair split in their daily lives.

 

Citizens across the nation, for example, have scored seven Report Cards starting in 1989, twenty years ago. With not a single exception, thousands of ordinary people have marked seven different governments as failures because these governments did not provide people with the basics of life: insufficient number of working health structures, lack of quality education opportunities, a failure to strengthen people's resource base and a growing difficulty in gaining modest amounts of money for ordinary needs of daily living.

 

However, the 1998-2003 Social Unrest period raised people's eyes and have them actively asking themselves why should this state of affairs continue. If the nation's natural resource base actually belongs to villagers through their lein, tribe and descent group, why is it that their lives aren't better, healthier and more productive?

 

This kind of thinking is one that fuels the present day work of the Constitution Review Congress that meets daily to pour over the 2004 Draft Constitution and bring it up to the present moment. Our 1978 Constitution, crafted by overseas experts, did not adequately reflect the reality of Solomon Islands. At independence day, there was no time to create a constitution which would fully accept Solomon Islands' customs, traditions and history. 

 

Now with 30 years of experience under our belt, having gone through a severe Social Unrest testing period and a people restless for a change  that would bring better life to the majority of our people, the time is ripe for a deep review of the original Constitution. With this review comes the need to draft a new, locally grown one. That is exactly what the Constitutional Review Congress is working on at present. 

 

The next two steps in the process are just as important. Bring the reformed Constitution back to the people for their understanding and input is vital. Since it is they who will be living under this new document it is only fair that they have a major say in how they think things should be working.

 

The final step in the process is incorporating people's thinking to a plenary session with all stakeholders. Those of the Congress will fan out among the nation's villages, explain as well as possible the highlights of the new constitution and seek input from the majority of people. This document will not be rushed . . . it is far too important for that.

 

But if a human document is to have divine blessing then it is important that the nation must pray that the final product is one blessed by the Almighty.