LGA given power to immediately suspend councillors under new amendment

A legal amendment ratified by President Mohamed Muizzu on Monday grants the Local Government Authority (LGA) the power to immediately suspend councillors when deemed necessary.

The authority, which functions under the Ministry of Local Government, received this power following the President’s ratification of amendments to the Decentralisation Act passed by Parliament last week. The amended law took effect on Monday.

The government’s original proposal to amend the Decentralisation Act, introduced with the aim of reducing the number of councillors, did not include provisions for immediate suspension. However, during committee review, Parliament’s ad hoc committee added a clause enabling the LGA to suspend councillors without prior advisory measures.

Under Article 62 of the existing Local Government Act, the LGA may take action against councillors, council presidents or mayors who fail to fulfil their duties, neglect responsibilities, misuse council resources, or act in violation of the code of conduct. The law currently requires:

The newly inserted provision, placed after Article 62(c), allows the LGA to bypass these preliminary steps in certain circumstances. It states that the LGA may take immediate action based on the inquiry report if it finds reasonable cause to do so against a councillor, council president or mayor.

The committee report said the amendment was necessary because existing law required the LGA to issue advice in the first instance regardless of the nature of the offence, with further action only taken after repeated misconduct.

The bill also includes additional powers for the LGA and follows recent constitutional amendments abolishing the Atoll Councils, along with the repeal of all related provisions in the Decentralisation Act.