î
The Judges
The Magistrates
The Justices of the Peace
1237
PART II.
[s. 6.]
The Oaths to be tendered by the
Governor,
The Oaths to be tendered by a
Judge.
The Oaths to be tendered by a
Magistrate.
Objects and Reasons.
1. Sections 7 (2) and 8 of the Promissory Oaths Ordin- ance, 1869, require that the oaths of members of the Executive and Legislative Councils respectively shall be tendered by the Governor.
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2. The expression Governor includes the Officer Administering the Government in local enactments under section 39A (1) of the Interpretation Ordinance, No. 31 of 1911, and also under Article XIX of the Letters Patent of the 14th February, 1917, and under Article XXXVII of the Royal Instructions of the same date.
3. By Article VIII of the said Instructions the Governor presides at all meetings of the Executive Council, unless when prevented by illness or other grave cause; and in his absence such member as the Governor may appoint, or in the absence of such member the senior member of the Council actually present, shall preside.
4. By Article XXI of the said Instructions the Governor presides in the Legislative Council unless prevented by illness or other grave cause; and in his absence any member appointed by him in writing shall preside, or in default of such member, the member who is first in precedence of those present shall preside.
5. Although the Promissory Oaths Ordinance, 1869, does not require that the oaths of members of the Executive and. Legislative Councils shall be taken at a meeting of the relevant Council, and although by section 11 of the Ordinance a person may enter upon his office and remain therein until the required oaths are duly tendered, it seems manifestly desirable that he should take the oaths at the first meeting of the Council which he attends.
6. The object of clauses 4 and 5 of this Bill is to enable the oaths of members of the Councils to be duly tendered, in the absence of the Governor or Officer Administering the Government, by the person lawfully presiding at the Council.
7. The object of clause 6 of the Bill is to substitute a new Schedule for the Schedule to the principal Ordinance, No. 1 of 1869.
8. In Part I of the old Schedule the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General and the Financial Secretary were required to take the oath of allegiance and the official oath, which were tendered by the Governor.