Remarks on Decentralization of Local Government Committee and Considerations for Decentralization Reform on Local Political Economy Approach

Abstract

Proposals to reform decentralization and local government by the Ministry of Defense in 2014, focused on the 1) restructuring public administration 2) relationship between central, regional and local administration, specifically between regional and local administration 3) division of work between different branches of government and 4) effective supervision procedures between government units and local administration for building the efficiency in public administration, overlooked the holistic analysis and lacked of radical critique on the root of decentralization and local government problems. Today, Thailand's local community problems become more complex because there are conditions and factors that affect the local community and local administrative organization, including more stakeholders in the local field of power.

Considerations for decentralization reform on local political economy approach are the reform committee must 1) adjust thoughts and worldview 2) create a new paradigm for distribution of power to local 3) analyze phenomena both holistic and integrated 4) integrate into localism which focuses on local history, community culture, community right, community identity, including indigenous knowledge and 5) take into account the dynamics of globalization that affects local communities.

In addition, the committee has to focus on the principal goals of decentralization that is to decentralize the decision-making to local community and people to make their own future and to participate in public policy of the community directly. They take pride in the local people and local community, a place where they live and they are. The committee has to stress on strategy to strengthen community, encourage local people to learn and participate in managing their own local communities together with local administrative organization. Thus, proposals to reform in this article need to return power to local communities and local people along with the restructuring public administration that balance between central, regional and local administrations.