Odesa city authorities want to involve the community in voting

The Secretary of Odesa City Council emphasized the importance of transparency in the work of the council and the openness of meetings of permanent commissions. He urged the deputies to participate more actively in the commissions and involve the community in discussing decisions.

Odesa intellectual podcast Intent. Insight is back with a new episode and a special guest - Secretary of the Odesa City Council Ihor Koval, Doctor of Political Science and Professor.

The live broadcast discussed the state of city government, Odesa's budget, challenges for the city authorities, as well as problems and prospects for education in Ukraine.

Ihor Koval, who sits to the right of Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov, shared his thoughts on the transparency of the city council. He noted that the broadcasting of meetings of permanent commissions has been taking place regularly and with high quality for the second convocation, although sometimes there are problems with the sound.

At the same time, the conciliation councils and "small executive committees" remain out of public access, and deputies rarely attend meetings of these bodies.

Koval emphasized that meetings of standing committees are of key importance, where issues are resolved and then submitted to plenary sessions. He urged the deputies to take an active part in the work of the commissions, even if it is not their direct competence, as discussing issues in an open format allows voters to see the decision-making process.

According to the city council secretary, the main task of the authorities now is to maintain openness and publicity of the council's work, provide broadcasts and engage the community in discussing issues important to the city.

According to the official, even in large cities, only a fraction of residents vote. This is a normal practice in Ukraine, as not all citizens are actively involved in direct democracy. He added that it is important to teach people how to use the mechanisms of participation in solving local issues, as the system differs from, for example, the Swiss system, where referendums are held more often and involve more participants.

In May, Transparent Cities Program of Transparency International Ukraine released the results of the Transparency Ranking of Ukrainian Municipalities for 2024. Odesa received 45.5 points, ranking 34th.

Also, in the ranking of fulfillment of European integration criteria among Ukrainian cities, Odesa did not make it to the top 10 with the same result, taking only 34th position. The study confirmed that the level of transparency of a city does not depend on its size or financial resources, but on the political will and consistent work of local authorities.

Анна Бальчінос