Dispute over local councils: Citizens are calling for more participation in Geislitz!

in Geislitz was voted in a recent meeting for the dissolution of the local councils. The local advisory board, on the other hand, discussed the topic for an hour and ultimately spoke out for the preservation of the committees. As part of this debate, numerous participants expressed their criticism of the procedure and the narrow time frame, which had to be observed for the decision.

suggestions for changing the local advisory boards were brought in, including adapting the number of members to the population. A mutual solution could be a common list that could maintain basic democracy in the village. Jan Bohlender pointed out that the discussion about democracy takes place in a sensitive political moment, before an important Bundestag election. Mayor Albert Ungermann (SPD) had brought the application to dissolve the local advisory boards based on suggestions from some factions. The municipal parliament plans to make a final decision in January.

criticism of the procedure and the decisions

The criticism of the procedure has become particularly loud because the Hessian City and Community Association (HSGB) only came to the relevant information late. The local advisory board met on January 2, while the mayor was on vacation. Ellen Heyer and Jürgen Röscher signaled that it was time to consider the work of the local councils as necessary and desired. Röscher underlined the importance of strengthening the local advisory boards.

Mayor André Millot confirmed that the local advisory board could do a lot, but often had to wait a long time for the implementation of his suggestions. Markus Luderer (SPD) expressed that Ungermann had inquired about other models without local advisory boards. A positive example are "apolitical lists" for local advisory boards in Sinntal who are not bound to parties. Werner Fischer, the mayor from Altenhaßlau, also spoke out for apolitical lists in order to promote stronger citizen participation. The committee agreed that the abolition of the local councils was too lightly and that changes should be considered instead.

In order to abolish the local advisory councils, a change in the main statute is required, for which a two-thirds majority in the municipal council is necessary.

The aspect of citizen participation and orientation was also a topic in an analysis of Buergergesellschaft.de . Municipalities are considered central places of political participation for the citizens, whereby there are various forms of citizen participation, such as citizens 'and residents' meetings, as well as citizen applications. The design of these forms of participation varies depending on the population and the decisions of the municipal council. The German City Day mentions the involvement of citizens in municipal decisions as the core of self -government.