Councils must focus on the essentials

LOCAL government officials have come under fire over the past few weeks. First, Ipoh Datuk Bandar Datuk Sirajuddin Salleh was criticised for allowing his officials to play moral guardian and then, Ampang Jaya Municipal Council enforcement director Kapt (Rtd) Abdul Kudus Ahmad found himself having to fend off allegations of graft. 

Over the years, as the size of the country’s population grew bigger, so has the role of local governments with more city, municipal and district councils created.