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{
    "id": 1067268,
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    "content": "(10) If either House of Parliament fails to pass the Bill, or the Bill relates to a mater specified in Article 255(1), the proposed amendment shall be submitted to the people in a referendum.” In answering the question on the procedure to be followed, it should be noted that the Constitution expects a resolution for approval of the Bill by county assemblies and passage or otherwise by Parliament. In our Parliament, as is the practice in many Commonwealth jurisdictions, consideration and passage of Bills follow the stages of publication, First Reading, Second Reading, Committee of the whole House and Third Reading. Except for the First Reading, all the stages involved require a vote, which determines the next course of action. The net effect of this then is that in order to fulfill the requirements of the Constitution for a decision on whether the House has passed the Bill, it is expected that the House will consider the Bill through the usual legislative stages with the necessary votes at each stage. This then brings me to the question of the thresholds applicable to the consideration of the Bill in view of the required votes I have alluded to as provided in Article 122, which provides about the majorities. In the case of a Bill to amend the Constitution by popular initiative, Article 257(8) provides a specific majority in each House. In this regard, a majority of all Members of the National Assembly means at least 176 members will be required to pass the Bill in its Second Reading and Third Reading. This number has been arrived at by ascertaining 50 per cent of all Members of this House and adding one to get a majority. Motions in committee of the whole House will be dispensed with in the usual manner. Having said that, allow me now to respond to concerns raised by the Member for Kikuyu, Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah, regarding the measures taken to ensure Members participate in the voting in view of the public health restrictions owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. From the outset, I wish to reiterate that the House leadership thanks Members for their continued co-operation in the implementation of the existing protocols. As you are all aware, the Ministry of Health guidelines currently restrict the maximum number in the Chamber to 112. It is for this reason that I designated other areas as being part of the Chamber, including the Members’ Lounge and the extended tent zones. This has allowed the attendance and participation of a greater number of Members in the business of the House. In view of prevailing circumstances, this arrangement will be upheld during the period of debate and voting on the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2020 to ensure that all Members who wish to participate are facilitated to do so. With regard to actual voting, the House shall vote by roll call, pursuant to Standing Order 72(2)."
}