CHAPTER ONE

1.1 Background Of The Study

In 1966, the council ordinance of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1967, Local Authority ordinance of West Cameroon, Decree N^o74/23 of the 5th December 1974. Laws N^o2004/017 of 22nd July 2004 on the orientation of Decentralization and N^o2004/018 of 22nd July 2004, have had significant bearing on the organisation and structuring of councils as local authorities.

To show the importance of this local government systems, Law N^o96/06 of 18th January 1996 to amend the constitution of 2nd June 1972 of the Republic of Cameroon in its part X, article 55 gives councils administrative and financial autonomy in the management of local interests to promote economic, social, health and to ensure regional balance.

The legislation of Cameroon categorizes as Municipal Council, City Council, Sub-divisional council and Urban Councils.

The Limbe City Council which started in the 1960s was formally known as Native authority (N.A). from N.A, it became Bakweri Area Council (BAC). This council was in charge of the whole of Fako Division. They were in charge of controlling schools and hospitals which are known as N.A schools and hospitals. As time went on, it changed from BAC to VICTORIA AREA COUNCIL and it was controlled by municipal administrators.

Around the 1960s, it was later changed to Victoria Urban Council as the Status of the population kept increasing. Around the 1980s, the name changed to the Limbe Urban Council. This happened when Victoria was changed to Limbe around the 1980s. all of these were ruled by the municipal administrators excluding the Limbe Urban Council which was ruled by Mayors. As the status kept on increasing, the government has to appoint a Government Delegate to the Limbe Urban Council. The first government delegate of Limbe Urban Council was Mr. Lifanda Samuel Ebiema. That was in the year 2000 and he served till 2009.

The name later changed to the Limbe City Council. In the year 2009, it was subdivided into three divisional councils;

• The Limbe one Council
• The Limbe two council
• The Limbe three council on the appointment of the first government delegate of Limbe City Council, Mr. Motanga Andrew Mojimba.

The Structural Organisation Of The Limbe City Council

2.1 Organisational Chart of the Limbe City Council

2.2 Functions of the Various Departments

The government Delegate

According to Law N^o2004/018 of 22nd of July 2004, to lay down rules governing councils. He represents the executive arm of government at the local level. His functions are;

• He takes local measures concerning objects left under his care and authority by the laws in force
• He ensures the implementation of Laws and regulations to maintain law and order with tranquility in the municipality.
• The government delegate shall ensure that any deceased person is dressed and buried without any discrimination based on ethnic, racial, political, or religious grounds.
• He legalizes any signature in his presence.
• He manages the local interest to promote economic, social, health, educational, cultural and sports development.
• He ensures harmonious development on the basis of national solidarity, regional potentials and inter-regional balance.
• He signs contracts; for example, he signs contracts ith ORANGE, CAM etc which sponsored the FESTAC, he signs contracts in the construction of roads in his municipality.
• He approves for the games during Holidays in the municipality. *
• He always has the final decisions in every meeting organized in his company in which he is in charge.
• He is involved in the developmental project with non-governmental organizations in order to fight floods like the “Womangue”
• He approves and partakes in most meetings concerning the growth and maintenance of the municipal area.
• He approves on the assistance of other small councils in Limbe to help it grow.

The Secretary General

The secretary General is in charge of the various departments that deals with the affairs of the organisation. The Secretary General of the Limbe City Council has the following rules which are;

• He works directly with the government delegate. He is the main assistant of the government delegate.
• He coordinates the activities of the various departments found in the Limbe city council. He ensures that the staffs’ activities are being done adequately and efficiently.
• He gives feedback to the government delegate so as to enhance that the council goals are being achieved.
• He represents the government delegate in some important meetings that the government does not attend due to tight schedule.
• He ensures that the activities of the organisation are smooth and he listens to complains of staffs and later submits complains to the government delegate for approval and adjustment.
• He also partakes in the signatory of some important documents of the city council.
• He also partakes in the signing of termination benefits like death, retirement and resignation of staffs.
• According to Law N^o2004/018 of 22nd of July 2004 states that the Secretary General is the coordinator of Council Services.

Municipal Police

The purpose of the council police is to ensure public order, safety, peace, security and sanitation. His duties shall include;

• Safe and convenient passage in public streets, wharfs places and ways, that is, cleaning, lighting, removal of obstructions, demolitions or renovations of buildings.
• He ensures the means of transportation of deceased persons, interment and exhumation. The maintenance of order and decency in grave yards without anybody being authorized to make distinctions.
• He inspects the apparatus or instruments used in weighing or measuring foodstuffs and the sanitation of edible food stuffs exposed for sale.
• He helps or partakes in the prevention through convenient precautions and intervention through the provision of aid in case of floods, epidemic and contagious diseases.
• He ensures that measures taken concerning the insane who may comprise public morality, the security of persons or the conservation of property. In the case of insane persons, at night, they would catch the insane people in town and transfer to other towns.
• He intervenes to prevent any unfortunate events that may be caused by stray animals.
• He also helps in the demolition of houses without permits and he does this in hand with the Urban Development especially Town Planning.
• He shall ensure peace and security in his municipality.
• He ensures the sanitation and public order of vehicles. If a vehicle passes without respecting the traffic lights, the vehicles must be seized and the person must pay a fine in order to collect the vehicle.

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