If you want to buy or rent a house, start a business, use your mobile phone or landline, consume electricity or water, you are paying municipalities. Municipalities benefit from almost every service out there in a way or another yet we rarely know how this money is spent, even though it’s our right to do so as per Article 45 of the Municipal Act.

I recommend you check out the below campaign by NAHNOO NGO and this website “Municipalities Under the Spotlight” to know more about your rights and how to obtain copies of the municipal council’s decision, municipal Budget statements, and financial reports.

Unfortunately, the real problem in most municipalities in Lebanon is that those who were born there are favored over those who live there since their votes don’t count and there’s nothing much you can do to ask for reforms or transparency if you weren’t born or can’t vote there.