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{
    "id": 1028271,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1028271/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 307,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Prof.) Kamar",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 33,
        "legal_name": "Margaret Jepkoech Kamar",
        "slug": "margaret-kamar"
    },
    "content": "challenges. For instance, at a sitting of the Senate held on Tuesday, 5th May, 2020, you, rose on a point of order and sought the guidance of the Speaker on the matter of the voting procedure in the Senate citing the guidelines issued on 17th April, 2020 as having been misconstrued as depriving Senators of their right to vote. (6) The issues were clarified in a Communication issued on Tuesday, 19th May, 2020, where it was noted that “the guidelines that were issued on 17th April, 2020 were introduced to ensure efficiency in the roll call method and for better time management in the Chamber, as well as to ensure that all county delegations have an equal opportunity of voting on matters concerning counties whether they made it to the list of the twenty-eight Senators designated to sit in the Chamber or not. This was achieved firstly by construing the term “present and voting” as used in the Constitution to mean not just the Senators sitting in the Chamber, but also those others within the designated places in the precincts of Parliament that were deemed to be part of the extended Senate Chamber, and secondly by allowing all the votes (once cast by the Senators themselves) to be communicated at once by the respective leaders during the roll call instead of each Senator in the Chamber standing to answer the roll call and the votes of those outside the Chamber being communicated by a different medium. Further, at a sitting held on 22nd May, 2020, a special Motion to remove the Deputy Speaker of the Senate from office was moved. It was the first such kind of Motion in the history of Kenya. Such a Motion can only pass by a resolution supported by the votes of at least two-thirds of Members. This is just one of the matters that have a constitutional threshold of two-thirds majority. Resultantly, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Speaker issued further guidelines on how to facilitate such kind of a sitting, in line with the tenets of the Constitution. The concept of designating rooms adjacent to the Chamber was further refined in the Communication. The lounge area in the New Wing was designated as an extension of the Chamber. Noting that only 28 Senators can be accommodated in the Chamber, seats were designated for the Senate leadership and other Senators were admitted on a first-come- first-served basis. Senators who missed a seat in the Chamber were directed to sit in the newly designated area in the New Wing. In addition to this, a Senator seated in the extended Chamber in the New Wing, wishing to contribute to the debate, was required to record his or her name with the clerks. The list of Senators wishing to contribute to the debate was handed to the Speaker, who called out the Senators to speak. A Senator whose name had been called out to contribute to the debate walked into the Chamber, bowed at the Bar and proceeded to make his or her contribution from the Dispatch Table. Upon conclusion, the Senator withdrew from the main Chamber and resumed his or her seat in the extended Chamber in the New Wing. During voting, the Senators in the extended Chamber walked into the main Chamber and cast their vote from the Dispatch Table, in the manner set out in Standing Order No.83(5), and thereafter, withdrew from the Chamber to their respective seats in the Lounge. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}