Relationship in Districts between Administrative and Departmental Officers
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/j.1099-162X.1961.tb01259.x |
| Date | 01 January 1961 |
| Published date | 01 January 1961 |
Relationship
zn
Districts
between
Administrative
and
Departmental
Officers
In
the
April 1955
issue
qf theJournal (Vol. VII,
No.2)
we
published
Tanganyika
Government
Circular
No. 7of 1954
relating
to the
co-
ordination
ofthe work of
administrative
and
departmental
staffs.
We now
publish
below
the Chief
Secretary
of
Kenya's
Circular
No.
12
of 1960
dealing
with the
same
subject
in thebelief thatit will be of
general
interest.
IN
MY
circular
No.2
of
r
eth
February
1960, I said
that
the
provincial com-
missioner would be responsible
through
me,
and
through
the
Chief
Com-
missioner
where
appropriate,
to the Governor for
the
progress of all people
within
his province,
the
tranquillity
and
good
government
of the province,
and
the
due
co-ordination
of
all
public
services
within
the
area
of his jurisdiction.
In
these
matters
the
provincial commissioner would
have
direct
access to
the
Governor
and
to myself,
the
Chief
Commissioner
and
the
appropriate
ministers.
The
time is now
opportune
to re-issue in a consolidated form a
circular
covering
the
relationship in districts between administrative
and
departmental
officers.
2. As I
made
clear in
the
circular referred to above,
the
Head
of
the
Admin-
istration in
the
widest sense in
each
province is
the
provincial commissioner,
and
in each district
the
district commissioner exercises similar responsibilities,
under
the
provincial commissioner's general supervision
and
control.
It
is His
Excellency's wish,
supported
by
the
Council of Ministers,
that
departmental
officers should
remember
that
upon
the
Administration rests
the
primary
responsibility for
the
progress
and
welfare
of
the
people
of
all races in
their
charge,
the
maintenance
of
peace
and
good government,
and
the general
working
of
the
machinery
of
government
in conformity
with
the
policy laid
down
by
the
Council of Ministers. Provincial
and
district commissioners for
their
part
must
remember
that
the
officers
of
other
ministries
are
qualified
professionally
and
technically
and
are
responsible for
the
implementation
of
their
own
ministers' policies,
and
their
rights
and
obligations
must
be fully
respected.
The
provincial commissioner is,
within
the
limits
of
his province,
the
principal
executive officer
of
the
Government. It is his
duty
to supervise
not
only
the
work
of his administrative
staff
but
also
what
is
done
in his
province by all
departmental
officers.
Matters
which
are
susceptible of settle-
ment
by direct
communication
between
the
provincial commissioner
and
provincial
departmental
officers will be so
adjusted
without
prior
reference to
Nairobi.
The
provincial commissioner will afford
departmental
officers all
possible assistance
and
support,
and
he in
turn
will be entitled to receive from
departmental
officers all
the
information
and
assistance he
may
need for
the
better
conduct
of
public
business in his office.
In
order
that
he
may
exercise
these co-ordinating responsibilities effectively
the
provincial commissioner will
be
kept
informed
by
ministries
of
relevant
policy decisions,
and
it is also in
order
for ministers
and
permanent
secretaries to correspond direct
with
pro-
vincial commissioners on
matters
which
are
their
common
concern, only
where
necessary keeping
the
Chief
Secretary's office informed by copy. Accordingly,
5°
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