1.83
Mong ương.
Government House.
920
2 SEP 1938
13th August, 1938.
My
den O'Brien,
Last week I sent a pressing request by
5 despatch for approval of the immediate creation of
the post of Deputy Director of Health Services.
feel sure that it will have your support.
I
There was one important aspect of the matter
which I intentionally omitted to mention
viz. that
relating to the Urban Council's activities.
It would
take too long to describe here fully the anomalous
1
situation set up by a "Sanitary Department",presided
over by a layman,which in practice carries out all the urban administration here except for roads, water and,
oddly enough, the house-rating system:
you are probably
aware of it from what Wellington has told you in the
past. The said layman is known as the Chairman of the
Urban Council and, statutorily, the Deputy Chairman is
the Director of Medical Services. Unfortunately, the
practice has been for the Health Inspectors to look to
the Chairman rather than the Medical Officers of Health as their ultimate authority and the latter have not had
t
a free enough hand; and, what is more, a number of
instances in which the Director of Medical Services and
Dr. A. J. R. O'Brien, C.M.G., M.C.,
Colonial Office,
LONDON, S.W.1.
Page 20Page 21
21