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{
    "id": 1028765,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1028765/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 45,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Khaniri",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 171,
        "legal_name": "George Munyasa Khaniri",
        "slug": "george-khaniri"
    },
    "content": "Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr., thank you for that information. My sincere apologies to the Senate Majority Leader and my friend, Sen. Orengo, because I did not have the facts right. I want to thank the entire team. I now know that it was led by Senior Counsel, Sen. James Orengo. We also want to hail the High Court for that landmark ruling which goes a very long way to restore constitutionalism and the rule of law in this Republic. It goes a long way to demonstrate that we are making good strides in achieving the independence of our Judiciary. This ruling has placed the Senate exactly where it belongs. It has placed the Senate exactly where the drafters of the Constitution want the Senate to be. For the longest time, Article 110 (3) of the Constitution has been flouted. You have read this Article and it is very clear in the sense that it says that regarding any Bill, there must be concurrence of the two Speakers in both Houses. Our “sister House” or the ‘Lower’ House around the corner has always acted with impunity when it comes to the provision of Article 110 of the Constitution. We want to thank the courts for restating the importance of this and the importance of a bicameral Parliament in the Republic of Kenya. The drafters of the Constitution had a reason why we had to have the National Assembly and the Senate. In my honest opinion, Article 110 says, “If the Bill concerns counties”, I cannot imagine any legislation that does not concern counties. I cannot imagine of any. This is one of the things that we should rectify in the BBI such that all Bills should come through the Senate because everything concerns counties. Any amendment to the Constitution 2010, or any process or endeavour to amend the Constitution 2010 must always endeavour to strengthen the Senate. The biggest gain we got in the 2010 Constitution is devolution and the Senate is the anchor of devolution. If you kill or weaken the Senate, it means that you are killing devolution; you have no interest in devolution. Whatever endeavor we have in changing the 2010 Constitution, we must ensure that the Senate is strengthened. That is my biggest contention with BBI, which I fully support except for that factor. It is not that I want to come back to the Senate. I have made it very clear that this is my last term in the Senate. However, I want see a working Senate. I want to see a Senate that will ensure that monies that we have increased to go the counties benefit people at the grassroots level. We cannot achieve that if we have a weak Senate the way it is being proposed in this document. 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."
}