499
CRIT PECORD OFFICE
Reference
C.O.882/12
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Council. Eventually the Tengku Besar of Tampin (the heir to which tiny principality is, at present, only an infant) will probably be given the seventh seat.
8. This Upper Chamber will form the sole authority on all matters concerning the Mohammedan religion, Negri Sembilan Custom and land tenure, banishments, and death sentences. It will also consider, with a view to formal assent or to remittal for amendment, all legislation passed by the Lower Chamber.
The latter will consist of :-
Officials.
The BRITISH RESIDENT, President;
Not more than 8 State officials nominated
by the Upper Chamber.
Unofficials.
Not more than 2 Malays.
"}
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2 Europeans.
2 Chinese.
1 Indian.
9. It is not proposed to alter the present membership or constitution of the PAHANG State Council, except by adding not more than five Unofficial Members. Of these, three will be European, one Malay, and one Chinese. The present Council con- sists of the Sultan, the Resident, three Malay Rajas, four Malay Chiefs, and the Chief Kathi.
10. Legislation by all these State Councils will continue to be, as it has been from the first days of British protection, in the English language. On the other hand the language of debate, which has hitherto been exclusively Malay, will in the Perak Council of State, the Selangor State Council, and the Lower Chamber of the Negri Sembilan Council be either Malay or English, as best suits each speaker. There are a sufficient number of bilingual members of these three Councils to render this course possible without adopting the cumbrous procedure of formal interpretation of speeches, which would double the length of all proceedings.
*
11. It will be noticed that the membership lists in paragraphs 4, 5, 8, and 9 of this despatch frequently include the words not more than before the number of nominated councillors in each class. The reason for this is that Their Highnesses the Rulers are as averse as I am myself from making appointments merely in order to bring the personnel of their Councils up to a definitely prescribed numerical strength. It is most important that only men of ability should be selected; because, with the passing of important powers from the Federal to the State Councils, there will no longer be room on the latter for lay figures, however picturesque.
12. I am glad to be able to report that Their Highnesses have invited all the existing Unofficial Members of the Federal Council to serve on their respective State Councils with effect from the 1st January, 1932. This will go far towards increasing that liaison between the Federal and State Governments which I regard as so essential to the future co-operative development of the four States.
13. The Legal Adviser, Federated Malay States, will probably be himself appointed a member of each State Council in the first instance with power to attend by deputy. This matter is, however, still under discussion with the British Residents.
14. Another question which is not yet crystallized is that of Council Procedure. At the present time the State Councils follow in a rather loose and haphazard manner the standing rules and orders of the Federal Council or, alternatively and sometimes concurrently, the etiquette ruling discussions at the Court of a Malay Sultan. A demand for a more defined procedure is likely to arise when the new members take their seats, and I feel that it is a matter for each Council to thrash out for itself. The four States have not all reached the same stage of development, nor are their internal constitutions identical, so that exact uniformity should not be expected.
15. I recognize, indeed, that the first year's working of the reconstituted Councils will be to a large extent empirical and that improvements to, or modifications of, the arrangements reported in this despatch may result therefrom. For this reason the appointments of new councillors, which have now been made by the Rulers, are for a year's duration only in the first instance. I confidently predict, however, that a year will suffice for the emergence, in identical or modified form, of State Councils competent to deal with those public services the control of which will devolve upon them in 1933 under the policy of decentralization. I am also confident that regular periodical meetings in State Council between the Rulers and leading members of the official and unofficial communities will be of great benefit to the country. For a long time past the
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State Councils have been degenerating into formal parochial assemblies unconversant with the important current problems of finance, economies, and general administration. This unfortunate atrophy will now be arrested, and the State Councils by an infusion of new blood be nursed back to efficiency and usefulness.
16. The reconstituted State Council will be convened and opened with the ceremony early in the new year.
C. 92300/32 [No. 41].
I have, &c.,
C. CLEMENTI,
High Commissioner.
No. 37.
FEDERATED MALAY STATES.
THE HIGH COMMISSIONER to THE SECRETARY OF STATE.
(Received 11th April, 1932.)
(No. 158.)
SIR,
WITH reference to the reconstitution of the State Councils of Their Highnesses
King's House, Kuala Lumpur, 17th March, 1932. the Rulers of the Federated Malay States, I have the honour to inform you that these Councils, as reconstituted on the lines adumbrated at the Sri Menanti Durbar, have now all been formally opened.
2.
I enclose for your information copies of reports which have been received from the British Residents regarding the reconstitution decided on in each State and containing an account of the ceremonial opening of each Council.
3. The reconstituted Councils are now ready to assume the increased responsi- bilities which will devolve on them.
The necessary legal documents in connexion with the partition of the Negri Sembilan State Council into two Chambers have been drawn up by the Legal Adviser, Federated Malay States, and are now in the process of being executed by the State authorities.
4. In paragraph 13 of my previous despatch* I indicated that it would probably be found to be necessary that the Legal Adviser, Federated Malay States, should be appointed a member of each State Council with power to attend by deputy. The matter was given my careful consideration in consultation with the Acting Chief Secretary to Government and the British Residents, and it has been decided that it was essential for maintaining uniformity of legislation that the Legal Adviser should be so appointed. This arrangement has now been made in the case of each State Council.
5. I recognize as I wrote in the penultimate paragraph of my earlier despatch that the working of the reconstituted Councils will in the beginning be to a large extent empirical, but I am glad to be able to inform you that I can now more confidently predict that these Councils, whether in their existing or in slightly modified form, will be fully competent to assume the full burden of the new responsibilities which will devolve on them when the next stage of decentralization is reached in 1933,
I have, &c.,
Enclosure 1 in No. 37.
STATE OF PERAK.
C. CLEMENTI,
High Commissioner.
THE, members of the reconstituted Council of State are as follows:- President: His Highness the Sultan of Perak (Paduka Sri Sultan Iskandar Shah,
K.C.M.G., K.C.V.O.).
Vice-President: The Raja Muda (Raja Abdul Aziz ibni al-Marhum Raja Muda
Musa, C.M.G.).
* No. 36.
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