LOCAL ELECTIONS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25499, 31 March 1944, Page 2

LOCAL ELECTIONS

NO SOLDIER CANDIDATES DIRECTION BY MINISTER (Special) AUCKLAND, Mar. 30. A routine order, purporting to prohibit members of the armed forces from standing in the coming local body elections, was circulated by headquarters, Northern Military District, today. The order was as follows: —“It has been directed by the Minister of Defence, that permission cannot be granted to any members of the armed forces to offer themselves as candidates in the forthcoming municipal elections. Consequently leave will not be granted.” , . It is not known on what legal authority the Minister has issued his direction, which is inconsistent with the practice followed since the outbreak of war in regard to both parliamentary and local body elections. Members of the armed forces stood as supporters of both the Labour and National Parties and of other political groups at the last Parliamentary election and were given special leave in which to conduct their campaigns. At the municipal elections in 1941 members of the forces were also allowed to stand. Local body members who joined the forces have not been obliged to resign their seats. If the prohibition is sustained, Captain R. S. Judson, V.C., will be debarred from seeking re-election to the Auckland City Council and the Auckland Transport Board, of which he has been a member since 1938 and 1939 respectively. Captain Judson was recently chosen by the Auckland Citizens’ and Ratepayers’ Association as one of its candidates for the two bodies. A new City Council candidate, Mr H. E. G. Matthews, whom the association is sponsoring, will also be debarred as a member of the forces.

The chairman of the association, Mr J. B. Donald, said to-day that he had just heard of the oi'der and had arranged to have the matter taken up in Wellington immediately. Mr Donald added that it was difficult to reconcile the order with the Bill now before Parliament allowing a subordinate employee of a local body to seek election to that body. Many members of the forces could sit as local body members without any_ detriment to their military duties in the present war situation. If any difficulty occurred, the local body could always give leave of absence. This had. in fact, been done by the City Council and other bodies when members went overseas.