Municipal expert Waldys Taveras has warned that creating two proposed provinces in the Dominican Republic, Santa Lucia and Matias Ramon Mella, would increase public spending.
Speaking to reporters from the newspaper Diario Libre, Taveras said two bills currently before the National Congress would create additional political positions and bureaucratic structures without improving public services for citizens.
Taveras asserted that the proposed demarcations have no reason to exist and will impose a higher budgetary cost on the public. He said the nation cannot support an expanding state bureaucracy that he described as large, ineffective, and costly.
According to Taveras, establishing the two provinces would require adding a new tier of public authorities. These positions would include new senators, deputies, and provincial governors.
Arguments over public service delivery
Taveras rejected arguments that splitting administrative boundaries would guarantee better management of civic services. He noted that the primary purpose of the state is to supply essential services including water, electricity, healthcare, education, and public safety.
Those core services are managed directly by central government ministries rather than provincial administration, Taveras explained. He pointed out that across the national territory of 48,000 square kilometers, citizens needing assistance deal directly with central ministries or their regional offices.
Taveras also questioned the role of provincial governors, stating that they perform no direct function in delivering services to the public. He argued that the legal framework defining their duties holds no practical utility in modern governance.
He described the legislation governing provincial governors as a Trujillo era law dating back to the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo, who ruled from 1930 to 1961. Taveras said the law merely obliges governors to report to the Minister of the Interior and Police regarding anyone who threatens security or speaks ill of the government and its officials.
Proposals before the National Congress
The proposal to create the province of Santa Lucia was introduced in the Senate by Felix Bautista, who represents San Juan province for the opposition Fuerza del Pueblo party. The bill seeks to elevate the municipality of Las Matas de Farfan to provincial status.
Bautista argued in the bill that Las Matas de Farfan meets the criteria for a new province due to its land area, agricultural and livestock production, commercial activity, and tourism potential. Under his proposal, Santa Lucia would comprise the municipalities of Las Matas de Farfan, El Cercado, and Vallejuelo, along with their municipal districts.
The second bill, proposing the creation of Matias Ramon Mella province, was submitted by Deputy Abelardo Rutinel of the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party. The initiative bears the signatures of 51 other legislators from various political parties.
Rutinel's bill proposes dividing the existing province of Santo Domingo due to continuous population growth. The proposal states that rapid urban transformations in the capital region have complicated the efficient delivery of public services across its wide area.
The bill highlights that residents in outlying municipalities, including Santo Domingo Oeste, Los Alcarrizos, and Pedro Brand, currently face long travel distances to reach the provincial capital. If approved, the new province of Matias Ramon Mella would bring together Santo Domingo Norte, Santo Domingo Oeste, Pedro Brand, Los Alcarrizos, and La Victoria, alongside their municipal districts.
