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{
    "id": 674711,
    "url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/674711/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 57,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Aluoch",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 5,
        "legal_name": "John Olago Aluoch",
        "slug": "john-aluoch"
    },
    "content": "enforce proper conduct in the assemblies without referring to either the Speaker of the assembly or anybody else. Part V of the Bill gives the county assemblies the power to summon witnesses. Clause 18(1) of the Bill reads as follows:- “A county assembly or its committees may invite or summon any person to appear before it for the purposes of giving evidence or providing any information, paper, book, record or document in the possession of that person and in this respect a county assembly and its committees shall have the same powers as the High Court as specified under Article 195 of the Constitution.” This means that committees of county assemblies will be able to summon witnesses in the same way that Committees of this House summon witnesses. In the event that a committee of a county assembly will be dealing with a recalcitrant person who declines to appear before the committee, the committee will be able to deal with that person the same way the High Court can do. I know the issue that comes to the minds of Members now as we give committees of county assemblies the powers of the High Court is: Do MCAs have the capacity to deal with issues the same way a judge would? In my view, we must answer that question in the affirmative because if we were to say that MCAs do not have the capacity we would then be demeaning them. I believe MCAs in this country are men and women of dignity and experience who would know how to handle powers given by law. Part VI deals with publications and broadcast. This provides immunity to county assemblies to keep documents of confidentiality and not to have them published until they are ready to have them published. In effect, this gives the county assemblies the powers to handle documents and information freely. That again would encourage useful and robust debate. I want to draw attention to Part VII of this Bill, which deals with enforcement. Clause 26(1)(a) says that: “A person shall not insult, assault, threaten, use abusive language, obstruct, molest or use any other language against a member during proceedings being within or leaving the premises of the county assembly or endeavour to compel any member by force, insult or menace to declare himself or herself in favour of or against any proposition or matter pending or expected to be brought before a county assembly or any of its committee.” Why is this necessary? This clause is borne out of experience in our country where we had members of the then county and municipal councils fighting physically in the chambers. This will stop any member from enforcing his or her liking on another member by force, insult or abuses. Again, this provision will give freedom to MCAs to conduct themselves and to debate as robustly as they can without fear of being molested by any person being either a member or from outside the membership of the assembly."
}