GREAT ZIMBABWE UNIVERSITY

JULLIUS NYERERE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCE

NAME : SHANDIRAI FIONAH

REG NO : M213177

PROGRAMME : LOCAL GOVENANCE

COURSE TITLE : LOCAL GOVERNANCE AND LEGISLATION

COURSE CODE : HLGS 222

LEVEL : 1:2

QUESTION : With reference to the traditional leadership act describe

the roles of chiefs, headmen and village heads in the mantainence of local government

in Zimbabwe.

ASSIGNMENT :1
With reference to the traditional leadership act describe the roles of chiefs,

headmen and village heads in the mantainence of local government in Zimbabwe.

Local government is people who have the authority to make and laws.

Traditional leaders are hereditary local neighbourhood leaders who are

selected through rules of succession .These leaders include the chiefs,

headman and the village heads. The duty of the chief include promoting

cultural rites and managing communal land and resettlement areas .

Headmen keep an up-to-date register of the villagers and village heads and

enforce environmental conservational laws including local fields boundaries .

The duty of village heads is to promote good social conduct in his

area and creating village development committees. Therefore , the following

essay will describe the roles of chiefs , headmen and village heads fully .

CHIEFS

To begin with , according to Ndlovu M and Dube N [2015] in the

analysis of the role of traditional leaders , chiefs promote cultural rites .

The chiefs help in passing the culture from one generation to the next .

This maintains local government in Zimbabwe as stated in the

constitution of Zimbabwe . The chiefs maintain the respect for and the

survival of cultural rites . This is done through the use of taboos ,

restrictions , myths and ceremonies . Culture will be well preserved and will

be practiced by every individual . It should also be noted that not

everyone will listen to the chief and take part in the cultural rites .
Adding on , chiefs take care of the use of communal land and resettlement

areas . The chiefs distribute land to the villagers equally . It can either be

land for farming or land for shelter . In the constitution of Zimbabwe in

chapter 2 number 72 it states about rights to agricultural land . In the

De Visser Makumbe J states that land should be distributed equally to

the whole village is important . However , in some cases the chief might

distribute the land unequally and give more to his relatives , friends and

the people who give him more , this can either be money or even food

. This usually happens when one doesn't have leadership qualities in him .

HEADMEN

Moreover , headmen enforce environmental conservational laws including local

fields boundaries . In the United Nations Development Programme Primer

'Fiscal Decentralisation and poverty reduction' [2010] it states that

agriculture reduces poverty in an area . The headmen makes sure that he

manages the field boundaries to avoid conflicts in the village . Local

government law in Zimbabwe is maintained as the food security which is

in the constitution of Zimbabwe is promoted . This reduces hunger and

poverty in an area . It may happen that the headmen fails to maintain

the field boundaries as other people have more power than others in an

area . For instance the headmen may fail to give the chief's relative less

land .

In addition , headmen enforce the rights of people in an area . In the

constitution of Zimbabwe it says that ' the state must take all practical

measures to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined in

chapter 4 to promote their small realisation and fulfilment ' . This means that

the headmen should make sure that the rules are followed and

punishment will be given to those who break the law . The role of local

authorities in democratic transition [2011] states that the village heads have

the right to enforce some laws in their areas to maintain order in their

villages . However it is hard for the headmen to just enforce laws as

they should wait for the Urban councils and the central government to

approve of their laws .

The headman also keeps an up to date register of the villagers and

the village heads . The village head has to know about the number of

people in his area and this helps in sharing the resources of the

village equally . For instance if the village head knows about the number

of people in his area it becomes easy for him to allocate either land

or equipment from the government equally . During the farming season the

government can give either farming tools or seeds to the people in the

rural areas and this helps the people as they can get food . The

headmen has to know about the number of people in his area .

VILLAGE HEAD

Furthermore , according to Dondo O ,Nyoni C and Makwerere D [2012] in the journal

'Silence as an endogenous mode of post conflict healing and reconciliation ' ,

it is stated that the village head should maintain peace in his area . In the

traditional leadership act the duty of a headmen is to promote good

social conduct in his area . This means that he resolves conflicts in an

area and solves people's conflicts . In the constitutional law it talks about

the national unity , peace and stability . When a village head promote

good social conduct in his area it maintains the local government in

Zimbabwe as it maintains peace and harmony in the nation . It should be

noted that not all village heads resolve conflicts fairly as some resolve

them through favouritism without looking at both sides of the story .

Moreso, village heads enforce village development committees. These committees help

in improving the villages. For instance a village may have mining places and

they can charge a certain fee to the miners . The money can be used

for building schools , orphanages , homes for the old age and even clinics

. In the schools orphans and the less privileged may not be paying fees

.In clinics the old age may get medical attention for free without paying

any funds even the consultation fee . If this is done a village will be developed .

This maintains local government law as it is stated in the constitutional

law under the national development that ' measures referred to this

section must involve the people in the formulation and implementation of

development plans and programs that affect them . A village will be easily

developed if a development committee is enforced .

In conclusion , all the duties of the chiefs , headmen and village heads

work hand in hand with the constitutional law of Zimbabwe . If a village is

developed and has everything in place it means that this also benefits

the whole nation as a whole and the local government law would have

had been maintained .It should also be noted that some of these

traditional leaders are chosen because of their families where leadership

is passed from one member of the family to the next . Some commenters

argue that some leaders are chosen because of their assumed male

qualities and not as her right as a human being . This makes it hard

for the chosen to work hard as they don't have passion for leadership .
REFERENCES

United Nations Development Program Primer 'Fiscal Decentralization and poverty

reduction' [2010] Agricultural land

Dondo O, Nyoni C and Makwerete D [2012] conflict healing and reconciliation

The role of local authorities in democratic transition [2011] rights of people in an area

Ndlovu M and Dube N Analysis of the relevance of traditional leaders [2015] cultural

rites

Local authorities and traditional leadership in Zimbabwe De Visser Makumbe J use of

land