Legislation
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/j.1099-162X.1959.tb01202.x |
| Date | 01 January 1959 |
| Published date | 01 January 1959 |
Legislation
I.
LOCAL
GOVERNMENT
TANGANrIKA
Local
Gooernment
(Amendment)
Ordinance
and
African
Chiefs
(Special
Powers)
Ordinance
Nos.
50
and42of
1957.
MOVING
the
second
reading
of
the
bill for
the
Local
Government
(Amendment)
Ordinance
in
the
Legislative Council of
Tanganyika,
Mr.
Heaney, on
behalf
of the Minister
of
Local
Government
and
Administration, .
recalled
that
the
main
ordinance
of
1953 introduced
statutory
local
government
councils
of
three types: town councils, county councils (only
one
of these is in
existence),
and
local councils.
The
common
characteristic of these was
that
they all worked
under
the terms
of
an
instrument
exactly defining
the
member-
ship of the council
and
its powers
and
functions,
and
were all multi-racial
in membership.
The
smallest unit,
the
local council,
operated
at
the
level
of
adistrict, or a smaller
area
"as
might be convenient".
It
was now
proposed to
introduce
district councils, replacing local councils, which would
be evolved from
the
native
authority
council, or
any
native
authority
which
covered
the
district
and
these district councils would
carry
out
the
duties
formerly
carried
out
by
the
native
authority
and
also provide services
hitherto
provided locally by
the
central government.
Mr.
Heaney
stressed
that
district councils would
not
be set
up
all over
the
territory immediately after the passing
of
the
ordinance.
The
ordinance
required
the
Minister for Local
Government
to satisfy himself
that
there was
a wish
among
the
inhabitants
of
an
area
for
the
setting
up
of
such acouncil
before he could authorise
the
preparation
of an
instrument
creating
it-and
such
instrument
must
be presented for
the
approval
of
Legislative Council
Arguing
that
the
district is
the
natural
unit
of
local government,
Mr.
Heaney
said
that
the
tradition
and
history of
the
territory showed
that
people tended
to
think
at
district level. A district was small
enough
to allow a
community
of
interest
and
to allow frequent meetings
of
adistrict council. At
the
same
time it was large
enough
to
have
adequate
revenue
and
resources from which
to provide services of good
standard.
Concerning
the
position
of
chiefs in relation to
the
new district councils,
this would
not
he very different from
the
present. But traditional
matters
could
not
be
dealt
with hy
the
new district councils, so a
complementary
ordinance
would he
prepared
safeguarding the powers
of
traditional
authorities
in district council areas.
There
was some feeling against
the
bill in
the
Legislative Council especially
regarding
the
future status
of
chiefs,
and
it was referred to a select committee.
This
committee
considered various representations, including those of
the
Tanganyika
Association
of
Local Authorities
and
the
Sukuma
Chiefs concerning
the principle
of
district councils being set
up,
but
the
committee felt these were
outside its terms
of
reference.
The
ordinance
as finally passed, lays
down
that
"any
chief
whose chiefdom is in
the
area
of
an
authority
shall, in
addition
to his powers as such chief,
have
all the powers
of
an
officer
of
the
authority
57
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