APLA Executive Committee called on the Palestinian government to find rapid solutions to address the financial repercussions of the "COVID-19" crisis that hampered local authorities. This issue was brought up during the committee’s meeting No. 4/2020, which was held at APLA’s headquarters in Ramallah, and was headed by APLA President Eng. Musa Hadid and the presence of its Executive Committee members and its Executive Director Eng. Abdallah Anati.
The Executive Committee stressed the need to have a clear mechanism for scheduling the receivables and the transaction process between the Local Authorities and the Palestinian government, while referring to the significant decline in their revenues; i.e. revenues of the local authorities during the current year as a consequence of the failure of the Palestinian government to transfer the accumulated debts owed to local authorities, and the drop in the local levying of licenses and fees due to the faltering economic activity. The committee stated that many municipalities and village councils were and still are unable to fulfill their obligations towards their employees as a result of this crisis, indicating that the ongoing financial distress threatens to shrink the scope of services delivered to citizens.
Furthermore, APLA’s Executive Committee also warned of the escalation of violations and infringements on the public right and the rights of citizens, and called upon the government and the security agencies to bear their responsibilities. It reiterated the need to take all the necessary measures against the violators, thus to follow up periodically along with the local authorities to take the necessary measures until these infringements in all their forms be eliminated.
The Executive Committee also warned of the repercussions of the "COVID-19" pandemic and the risks that the personnel of the local authorities encounter in light of the increasing and accelerating spread of the virus. It called on all local authorities to develop cohesive practical plans to utilize preventive measures and procedures necessary to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 which shall ensure a sustained delivery of the basic services to citizens. It recommended that the teams of local authorities divide into work groups to tackle the different key sectors making sure they avoid any overlap in their work.
Moreover, the Executive Committee recommended that the 2019 APLA’s report submitted by the independent legal auditor which includes the financial statements, be shared with the General Assembly in the next meeting for approval. It also decided to form several committees of its members to follow up on a range of files and issues of priority to the local authorities, and finally it reviewed the most prominent projects, activities and programs of APLA’s Executive Office drawn until the end of this year
