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Document Information:
- Year: 2012
- Country: Kenya
- Language: English
- Document Type: Domestic Law or Regulation
- Topic: CSO Self-Regulation
Kenya_chief.pdfLAWS OF KENYA
Published by the National Council for Law Reporting
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1. Short title. 2. Interpretation. 6. Duty of chief to maintain order. 7. Chief may employ persons to assist him in carrying out duties. 8. Powers of chief in prevention of crime. 10. Power of chief to issue orders for certain purposes. 11. Further powers of chiefs to issue orders. 12. Power to require work or services in emergency. 13. Power to require work or services for conservation of natural resources. 14. Remuneration and limitation on duration of work or services under section 13. 15. Exemptions from section 13. 16. Compensation for death or injury. 17. Administrative officer may require chief to issue or cancel orders. 18. Penalty for disobeying orders. 20. Conduct of chiefs. 26. Rules.
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Date of commencement: 24th March, 1937.] [Cap. 97 (1948), Act No. 12 of 1950, Act No. 43 of 1952, L.N. 362/1956, L.N. 172/1960, L.N. 461/1963, L.N. 101/1964, Act No. 9 of 1967, Act No. 17 of 1967, Act No. 13 of 1978, Act No. 10 of 1997.] An Act of Parliament to make provision in regard to the powers and duties in regard to the powers and duties t No. 10 of 1997, Sch.] 2. Interpretation In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “chief” and respectively mean the persons appointed for any area to the offices of chief and assistant chief, respectively, in the for any area to the offices of chief and assistant chief, respectively, in the . 17 of 1967, 1st Sch., Act No. 13 of 1978, Sch.] 3. Repealed by Act No. 10 of 1997, Sch. [L.N. 461/1963, Sch., L.N. 101/1964, Sch.] PART II – GENERAL 4. Repealed by L.N. 461/1963, Sch. 5. Repealed by L.N. 461/1963, Sch. 6. Duty of chief to maintain order It shall be the duty of every chief or assistant chief to maintain order in the area in respect of which he is appointed, and for such purpose he shall have and exercise the jurisdiction and powers by this Act conferred upon him over persons is Act conferred upon him over persons 1964, Sch., Act No. 13 of 1978, Sch.] 7. Chief may employ persons to assist him in carrying out duties A chief or assistant chief may employ any person or persons subject to his jurisdiction to assist him in carrying out the duties imposed upon him by this Act or otherwise by law, and any person so employed may carry out and give effect
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8. Powers of chief in prevention of crime (1) Any chief or assistant chief may interpose for the purpose of preventing, and shall to the best of his ability prevent, the commission of any offence by any (2) Any chief or assistant chief knowing of a design by any person to commit an offence within the local limits of his jurisdiction may, if it appears to such chief or assistant chief that the commission of the offence cannot be otherwise prevented, arrest or direct the arrest of such person; and any person arrested under the powers conferred by this subsection shall, without delay, be taken to (3) Every chief or assistant chief receiving information that any person who has committed a cognizable offence triable by any court or for whose arrest a warrant has been issued, is within the local limits of his jurisdiction shall cause such person to be arrested and to be taken forthwith before a court having (4) Every chief or assistant chief receiving information that any cattle or other livestock or other property of any description which has been stolen outside the local limits of his jurisdiction has been brought and is within such local limits shall cause such cattle or other livestock or other property to be seized and detained pending the orders of an administrative officer, and shall forthwith report such pending the orders of an administrative officer, and shall forthwith report such N. 101/1964, Sch., Act No. 9 of 1967, Sch., Act No. 17 of 1967, First Sch., Act No. 13 of 1978, Sch., Act No. 10 of 1997, Sch.] 9. Repealed by Act No. 10 of 1997, Sch. [Act No. 43 of 1952, Sch., L.N. 101/1964, Sch., Act No. 17 of 1967, First Sch., Act No. 13 of 1978, Sch., Act No. 10 of 1997, Sch.] 10. Power of chief to issue orders for certain purposes Any chief may from time to time issue orders to be obeyed by the persons residing or being within the local limits of his jurisdiction for any of the following (a) prohibiting or restricting the consumption or possession of intoxicating liquor by, and the supply of such liquor to, young (b) prohibiting or restricting the holding of drinking bouts; (c) prohibiting or restricting the cultivation of poisonous or noxious plants, and the manufacture, transfer, sale and possession of (d) prohibiting or restricting the carrying of arms; (e) prohibiting any act or conduct which in the opinion of the chief might (f) preventing the pollution of the water in any stream, watercourse or water-hole, and preventing the obstruction of any stream or
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(g) regulating the cutting of timber and prohibiting the wasteful (h) preventing the spread of disease, whether of human beings or (i) prohibiting any act or thing which may cause damage to any public road or to any work constructed or maintained for the benefit of the (j) (k) (l) destroying locusts in any stage of development; (m) (n) controlling grass fires; (o) regulating the use of artificial water supplies constructed from public (p) for any other purpose authorized by this Act. for any other purpose authorized by this Act. L.N. 461/1963, Sch., L.N. 101/1964, Sch., Act No. 10 of 1997, Sch.] 11. Further powers of chiefs to issue orders Any chief may from time to time issue orders to be obeyed by the persons residing within the local limits of his jurisdiction for any of the following (a) (b) (c) requiring persons to report the presence within the local limits of his jurisdiction of any property stolen or believed to have been stolen (d) suppressing or controlling animal or insect pests or plant pests, (e) (f) requiring any person to report to his chief without delay the arrival in (g) (h) requiring the proper burial of deceased persons in cemeteries or (i) forbidding the deliberate exposure of persons supposed to be dying; (j) restricting or prohibiting the use of grazing by any form of stock in any area which has been set apart for the purpose of reconditioning or which has been planted with any fodder-producing plants or (k) (l) (m) for any of the purposes authorized by this Act.
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Whenever it appears to the Minister that it is necessary for any work or service in connexion with an emergency consequent on fire, flood, earthquake, violent epidemic or epizootic disease, invasion by animal or insect pests or plant diseases or pests, or arising from circumstances which would endanger the existence of the whole or any part of the population, to be done or rendered, he may, in writing, authorize any chief to issue orders under this section to persons within the jurisdiction of such chief, and any chief so authorized may by any such order require any able-bodied adult person to perform any such work or render (i) the Minister shall provide such food, housing and transport as he may consider necessary for persons engaged in performing any (ii) the Minister shall pay to any person who performs any work or renders any service under this section, and who by reason thereof is obliged to absent himself from his usual place of residence for a continuous period exceeding twelve hours, remuneration for such work or service at a rate not less favourable than the rate prevailing for similar work or service in the district in which the work is performed or the service rendered; and in any other case, if the Minister considers that it would be unjust or unreasonable to pay no remuneration for work performed or service rendered under this section, he may pay therefor such remuneration as he may consider (iii) any remuneration paid, and the cost of any food, housing or transport provided, under this section shall be paid from public ., L.N. 101/1964, Sch., Act No. 9 of 1967, Sch.] 13. Power to require work or services for conservation of natural resources Whenever it appears to the Minister that it is necessary for any work or service in connexion with the conservation of natural resources to be done or rendered, the Minister may, by notice in the , authorize any chief to issue orders under this section to persons within the jurisdiction of such chief, and any chief so authorized may by any such order require any able-bodied adult male to perform any such work or to render any such service as aforesaid specified in Provided that a notice under this section shall not be issued unless the (i) that the work to be done or the service to be rendered is of (ii) that the work or service is (iii) that it has been impossible to obtain voluntary labour for carrying out the work or rendering the service by the offer of rates of wages and
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conditions of employment not less favourable than those prevailing (iv) that the work or service will lay too heavy a burden on the community concerned, having regard to the labour available and its (v) that the members of the community concerned, or their representatives, have been consulted in regard to the need for the d in regard to the need for the 14. Remuneration and limitation on duration of work or services under (1) Any person required to do any work or render any service under section 13 shall be remunerated at a rate not less favourable than the rate prevailing for similar work or service in the district in which such work is performed or such service is rendered, and shall not be called upon to do any such work or render any such service for any period exceeding, or for any periods exceeding in the aggregate, sixty days, inclusive of any time spent in going to and returning from (2) Every person who performs any work or renders any service under section 13 shall be furnished with a certificate showing the period or periods ificate showing the period or periods 15. Exemptions from section 13 The following persons shall be exempt from the provisions of section 13 of (a) any person under the age of eighteen years or over the age of fifty (b) any teacher or student in a public school within the meaning of the Education Act (Cap. 211) or a school registered under Part IV of that (c) any person employed by the Government or any public local (d) any person employed under the Employment Act (Cap. 226); (e) any person certified unfit for such work on health grounds by a ch work on health grounds by a 16. Compensation for death or injury Any person engaged in performing any work or rendering any service under section 12 or section 13 shall, while so engaged, be deemed, for the purposes of the Workmen’s Compensation Act (Cap. 236) to be a workman employed by the Government, and, notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained therein, the Provided that, for the purposes of calculating the amount of any compensation payable under that Act by virtue of the provisions of this section, the rate of earnings of such person shall be deemed to be the rate of
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remuneration paid or payable to such person under section 12 or section 14, as the case may be, and, where no remuneration is so paid or payable, shall be the rate of remuneration prevailing in the district in which work was being performed or service rendered by such person under this Act for work or service similar this Act for work or service similar 17. Administrative officer may require chief to issue or cancel orders Whenever an administrative officer, considers that any order issued by a chief should not have been issued or should not be enforced he may direct the chief to be enforced he may direct the chief to 1963, Sch., Act No. 10 of 1997, Sch.] 18. Penalty for disobeying orders Any person who, without lawful excuse, disobeys or fails to comply with any lawful order issued or given by a chief or assistant chief under this Act shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding five hundred shillings and in default of payment, to extra mural penal employment for a period not exceeding employment for a period not exceeding L.N. 101/1964, Sch., Act No. 17 of 1967, First Sch., (a) engage in the activities of any political party or act as an agent of (b) in the performance of his functions or the exercise of his powers (i) subject any person to torture or to any other cruel, inhuman or (ii) enter or search any private premises with a warrant duly (iii) demand or solicit any donations or collections in a manner likely to suggest that such donations or collections are a pre- (c) maintain a cell or other place of confinement of persons. (2) Without prejudice to the provisions of subsection (1), the minister may, in rules, prescribe a code of conduct to govern the conduct of chiefs in the exercise (3) A chief who contravenes any of the provisions of this section or the provisions of any code of conduct prescribed under subsection (2) shall, without prejudice to any other penalty prescribed by law, be guilty of an offence and
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The Minister may make rules for the better carrying into effect of the