Page 31 - Afrika Must Unite

i6 AFRICA MUST UNITE
policy has been to guide the colonial territories to responsible
self-government within the Commonwealth. The late Ernest
Bevin defined the reasons for this policy as ‘Give . . . and keep.5
It seems he m eant that by voluntary withdrawal at a suitable
time the British would retain the goodwill of the African,
strengthen the Commonwealth, earn the praise of the rest of the
world, and at the same time keep maximum political and
economic advantages. The British, though liking to pose as
dreamy idealists who, through absence of mind, achieved an
empire, are in my experience the most hard-headed of realists.
They know that Africa must inevitably be ruled by Africans, and
they want to come out of the business in the best possible way.
From early days internal self-government was granted to
colonies of settlement, but in the case of colonies where there was
no strong European settler community to run affairs, political
development was much slower. Unlike France, Britain did not
consider her colonies an extension of the homeland. No colonial
constituencies have at any time been represented in the House of
Commons in London.
Generally, a Governor was placed over each colony. He was
responsible to the Secretary of State for the Colonies, who in turn
was responsible to the House of Commons, the Cabinet, and
ultimately to the Crown. He was not responsible to a local
electorate; and here the truly authoritarian nature of the regime
becomes apparent.
Although most colonies had an Executive Council (Exco),
this was usually appointed by the Governor, and again was not
responsible to any locally-elected assembly. In some colonies
unofficial members were in due course appointed. European
unofficial members sat on the Executive Council in Kenya after
19 19; and Africans on the Executive Councils of the Gold Coast
(Ghana) and Nigeria after 1942. These Councils had advisory
power only; and their proceedings were secret.
U nder the Executive Council was the Legislative Council
(Legco), which passed the Budget and certain laws. It could
debate and vote on legislative proposals put before it, and could
question the government. But the government was not bound
to take its advice. Before the Second W orld W ar no Africans sat
in Legislative Councils in East Africa. In 1944 one was nomi­