HARARE CITY LIBRARY ACT (CHAPTER 25:05)

CHAPTER 25:05

HARARE CITY LIBRARY ACT

Acts 24/1961, 26/1968, 4/1983;22/2001 (s. 4); R.G.N 59/1974.

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

Section

1. Short title.
3. Establishment and constitution of Harare City Library trustees.
4. Harare City Library Trust.
5. Transfer of former museum section to Trustees of the National Museum.
6. Powers of Board.
7. Purposes of Trust.
8. Harare City Library Committee.
9. Tenure of office of Committee.
10. Election and appointment of members of Committee.
11. Leave of absence.
13. Chairman, quorum and voting of Committee.
14. Powers of Committee.
15. Financial provisions.
16. Audit of accounts.
17. By-laws.

AN ACT to establish a board of trustees for the control and management of the Harare City Library; to transfer the assets and liabilities of the trust established under the Queen Victoria Memorial Act, 1951, to the aforesaid board of trustees and to the Trustees of the National Museum of Southern Rhodesia established under the National Museum Act [Chapter 71 of 1963]; and for matters incidental and supplemental to the foregoing.

[Date of commencement: 2nd June, 1961.]

WHEREAS the land granted by the Government in the City of Harare for the purpose of a memorial to Her late Most Gracious Majesty Queen Victoria, the building erected on such land as such memorial and known as the Queen Victoria Memorial and all other buildings erected on such land before the 2nd June, 1961, have been sold by the board of trustees constituted by the Queen Victoria Memorial Act, 1951 (hereinafter called the former trustees and the former Act, respectively) under the provisions of that Act and the proceeds thereof have been apportioned equally between the former trustees and the Trustees of the National Museum of Southern Rhodesia established under the National Museum Act [Chapter 71 of 1963] (hereinafter called the museum trustees);

AND WHEREAS the movable property, articles and assets of the aforesaid trust have been allocated to and divided between the former trustees and the museum trustees;

AND WHEREAS the functions of the Queen Victoria Memorial as a public library and a public museum have now been separated, those of the library being controlled by the former trustees and the committee established by the former Act, and those of the museum being controlled by the museum trustees;

AND WHEREAS owing to financial reorganization and other causes the former trustees, the aforesaid committee and the museum trustees have expressed the desire that the library and the museum should henceforth function as separate institutions;

AND WHEREAS it is expedient that effect should be given to the desires of the former trustees, the aforesaid committee and the museum trustees:

NOW, THEREFORE, be it enacted as follows—

1    Short title

This Act may be cited as the Harare City Library Act [Chapter 25:05].

                       2    Interpretation

In this Act—

“Board” means the board of trustees established under section three;

“Committee” means the committee of management established under section eight;

“former Act” means the Queen Victoria Memorial Act, 1951 (No. 38 of 1951);

“former board” means the board of trustees established under the former Act;

“former committee” means the committee of management established under the former Act;

“former trust” means the Queen Victoria Memorial established under the former Act;

“Library” means the public library referred to in section seven;

“Minister” means the Minister of Sports, Recreation and Culture or any other Minister to whom the President may assign the administration of this Act;

“subscriber” means a subscriber to the Library;

“Trust” means the trust established under section four.

                       3    Establishment and constitution of Harare City Library trustees

• There is hereby established a board of trustees to be known as the Harare City Library Trustees.
• The Board shall consist of the Mayor of the City of Harare and the Master of the High Court or their successors in office, permanent or acting.
• The members of the Board shall not be personally liable for any bona fide action they may take in such capacity.

                       4    Harare City Library Trust

• The movable property, articles and assets allocated to the library section of the former trust in terms of section 6 of the former Act and one-half of the proceeds of the sale of the land and buildings which constituted the former trust are hereby transferred to and vested in the Board in trust for the people of Zimbabwe, and any property subsequently acquired by the Board or the Committee and any grants, bequests or donations made to the Board, the Committee or the Library shall vest in the Board.
• The Trust shall be called the Harare City Library Trust, and all property, articles, assets, grants, bequests and donations mentioned in subsection (1) shall constitute the Trust.
• All land purchased in terms of section six shall be registered in the name of the Board.
• All rights, liabilities and obligations which immediately before the 2nd June, 1961, were vested in or incurred by the former board and the former committee are hereby transferred to and vested in the Board and the Committee respectively.
• All agreements and contracts which were lawfully entered into by the former board and the former committee and which were subsisting immediately before the 2nd June, 1961, shall be of full effect against or in favour of the Board or the Committee, respectively, as fully and effectually as if instead of the former board or the former committee, as the case may be, the Board or the Committee had been named therein and had been a party thereto.
• All proceedings or causes of action pending or existing immediately before the 2nd June, 1961, by or against the former board may be continued and enforced by or against the Board as they might have been by or against the former board if this Act had not been passed.

                       5     Transfer of former museum section to Trustees of the National Museum

The movable property, articles and assets allocated to the museum section of the former trust in terms of section 6 of the former Act and one-half of the proceeds of the sale of the land and buildings which constituted the former trust are hereby transferred to and vested in the Trustees of the National Museum of Southern Rhodesia established by the National Museum Act [Chapter 71 of 1963].

                       6    Powers of Board

(1) The Board may, after consultation with the Committee and with the approval of the Minister—

• purchase immovable property;
• erect buildings on land held by it in trust;
• sell or dispose of any immovable property held by it in trust for the purpose of acquiring other immovable property; (d) invest—
  • any moneys obtained from the sale or disposal of immovable property in terms of paragraph (c); and
  • any interest derived from such investments; which are not required for immediate use; for the purpose of the Trust.

(2) Any property so purchased or acquired and any buildings so erected shall vest in the Board and form part of the Trust.