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{
    "id": 1001526,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1001526/?format=api",
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    "content": "(1) Whether the procedure employed in the appointment of a Member of Parliament to the Office of a Member of the Parliamentary Service Commission should mirror the procedure that would be applied in removing the person from office; and, (2) Whether the removal of a Member of Parliament or non-Member of Parliament from the Office of a Member of the Parliamentary Service Commission ought to be proceeded with in accordance with the provisions of Article 251 of the Constitution as read with Standing Order 230 or otherwise as provided for in Section 10 of the Parliamentary Service Act, 2019. Hon. Members, before I embark on the issue of removal of a Member of the PSC, allow me to revisit the purpose the Commission serves and pose some questions which are fundamental to this considered guidance. For what reason was the Commission established and who does it serve? Does it exist to take care of the interests of parties, or Members, staff and the public at large? I find that a clear background on this will help us all in discerning the Parliamentary Service Commission and its performance against the role that it is supposed to play. Hon. Members, allow me to take the House down the memory lane. The journey for the autonomy of the administration of the Legislature in Kenya begun during the 2nd Parliament when, on 20th March 1970, a Motion for a Resolution to give Parliament autonomy was introduced in the House by the late Hon. Jean Marie Seroney, then a Member of Parliament for Tinderet. However, the autonomy that Hon. Seroney sought was never realised and was not to be realised until the Eighth Parliament. Some of you may recall that before 1999, the National Assembly was a Department under the Office of the President. At that time, the Office of the President determined Parliament’s budget, staffing, remuneration, calendar as well as other parliamentary affairs. Members of staff were pooled from the mainstream Civil Service with all human resource matters being administered from the then Directorate of Personnel Management, or the “DPM” as it was then popularly known. The Eighth Parliament took a definite step aimed at attaining an autonomous and independent status for the National Assembly then. Indeed, the Deputy Leader of the Majority Party, the Hon. Jimmy Angwenyi, MP, and the Member for Igembe North, the Hon. Maoka Maore, MP, will remember that it took the passage of the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment)(No.3) Bill of 1999 to establish the Parliamentary Service Commission through the introduction of Sections 45A & 45B of the then Constitution. This was a great stride towards entrenching the independence of Parliament, which was followed by the introduction and enactment of the Parliamentary Service Act a year later on 28th November 2000. From the onset, the inaugural Commission was established, among other things, to- (i) provide such services and facilities as are necessary to ensure efficient and effective functioning of the Assembly; (ii) direct and supervise the administration of the services and facilities provided by, and exercise budgetary control over, the Service; (iii) determine the terms and conditions of service of persons holding or acting in the offices of the Service; (iv) from time to time as necessity arises, appoint an independent body to review and make recommendations on the salaries and allowances of the members of the Assembly; (v) initiate, co-ordinate and harmonize policies and strategies relating to the development of the Service;"
}