The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Honourable Ben Malunga Phiri M.P says local councils can excel and offer better service to their residents if their leadership takes on problem solving as a call to duty.

Honourable Phiri made the observation when he opened a technical consultation session for Chief Executive Officers and District Commissioners from the Southern Region at Mount Soche Hotel recently.

The Minister bemoaned the rampant excuses for under performances in local councils saying it is mostly due to a fear to fail by the controlling officers. Hon Phiri said being innovative means facing failure and refusing to give up and until one is successful.

‘I have never failed in my life means you have never tried anything new in your life’, said Phiri.

He also asked the controlling officers that they would do well to exude positive energy as managers. Honourable Phiri also said time has come for the DC’s to eliminate the corrupt image against the councils and work to promote interventions that transform their authorities and earn them the trust of the people in their districts.

The Minister said he would personally lobby with government to plough back to the councils revenue collected by central government from seed funding as well as look at other challenges and bottlenecks as identified by the controlling officers. Other challenges raised were capacity in resource mobilisation, financial management and development planning.

He then asked all leadership in the councils to do an honest search on their days’ worth of work, ‘get into the lab, break every bone and marrow’, to achieve financial stability in the councils, and effectively mobilise resources.

The meeting was the first of three regional meetings for the local authority controlling officers with others done in Salima and Mzuzu.