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{
    "id": 1017319,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1017319/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 71,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Olekina",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 407,
        "legal_name": "Ledama Olekina",
        "slug": "ledama-olekina"
    },
    "content": "What has happened in this country is that we have been doing so well in terms of democracy. We have been growing as a young democracy with the freedom of speech, but the action by the CJ really takes back all that power and gives it to the President. It is the President to decide. Madam Deputy Speaker, I have looked at the Constitution again. It talks about the election of the President and Members of Parliament (MPs) being on the same day. What does this advisory by the CJ mean? Does it mean that once Parliament is dissolved, the President also goes home? It is the time of the COVID-19. Do we have money to run a general election and then come back to the issue of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI)? We need to be realistic because not everything is cast in stone. We will gain a lot more if we consult instead of taking a lone-ranger approach. This lone-ranger approach has taught some of us that it does not help. We have to consult here. Whenever a Member brings a Bill here, they need to sit down, discuss and build consensus. Madam Deputy Speaker, there are things that really shocked me. As a Member of this Senate, I introduced two Bills to this House. They went to the National Assembly, but they were termed as Money Bills. If we blame both Houses for the actions of one House, what are we going to do in this country? Are we just going to create things? My question is: Can the legislation contemplated under Article 100 of the Constitution be enacted without amending the ceiling on the number of MPs as provided by the Constitution? Many people would say you go back to the Constitution for the answer. If we say that we should change the way Parliament works, we will be limited to the provisions of Article 255 of the Constitution that requires a referendum. In order to build a strong democracy in this country, we must look at the entire law and admit mistakes we made and correct them, moving forward. Madam Deputy Speaker, as I wind up and request Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. to second, I just want to encourage all of us to read the Constitution and correct it through referendum very soon."
}