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{
"id": 1158748,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1158748/?format=api",
"text_counter": 369,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Ruaraka, ODM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. T. J. Kajwang’",
"speaker": {
"id": 2712,
"legal_name": "Tom Joseph Kajwang'",
"slug": "kajwang-tom-joseph-francis"
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"content": "he does not live in Karen, maybe he lives in Upper Muthaiga, where there is a beautiful lease drawn by fabulous lawyers which can show that he is a tenant. Now, how am I supposed to show that I am a tenant in those carton houses? This is an affront to Kenyans. Until Article 43 and those social rights are enforced, the country must work towards uplifting the majority of Kenyans to such a level that you can then ask some of these questions. Why would you want to make the voter have the burden of proving himself to enjoy his rights? The Independent IEBC is asking people for letters from the Chief. Which Chief will show that I am a resident? This process has been abused. You have to pay Chiefs money – Kshs100 – to give you a letter. So, we said that whereas we see the mischief, the manner in which you have told us, under Article 38(3), is not reasonable for the enjoyment of those political rights. In any case even then, these are rights which can be limited. All right. But, you know that, under Article 24(2), you have to show how that limitation is going to work, the extent of the limit, and exactly what you are limiting. We write the law but policy makers, the IEBC, are the primary people. Let them produce that which works around this subject. When that is done, then we will accept. For example, they may think of more innovative approaches like creating some discretion on a returning officer to ask one or two questions that will show what a person is. Another one is to create an offence of people who are paying people to move from one constituency to the other. Member for Suba North, this is very clear: when the time comes, we will propose legislation amendments. This is really unconstitutional. That is the view that we took, both in Clauses 13 and 14. It tries to say that the voter must be a voter in that electoral unit. This is for a vacancy if, for example, somebody leaves the Assembly either by death or by resignation. Then the law would have said that somebody must have been a voter in that electoral unit. We think that is adding a restriction that the Constitution did not envisage. Section 25 of the Act deals with what qualifies for qualification and disqualification. This is over and above what the law says. Clauses 15 and 16 have been spent. If you look at the Political Parties Act, you will see that we took them over in the consequential amendments. So, they have been spent. That is why we are preferring to delete them. Something that is close to the heart of the Member for Suba North, and this is the sweetener, is on independent candidacy. I really wish all Members would see this. Member for Dagoretti South, in the view of the Committee, we are not going to restrict anybody’s movement to be an independent once you have finished with the parties. Hon. Kimunya has admitted that this is something that will affect the 2027 elections. Let us be fair. Let us work as Government. Let the Executive and the Legislature work towards attaining some political stability in political parties. Everybody knows that political parties have not been developed to the sense that they have organs which can really do those things that the Constitution requires them to do, whichever constellation you are thinking about. Let us work on non-legislative interventions. Not everything should be legislated. We should legislate on how to give more money for voter education and civic education by insisting that parties create structures. Those are the non-legislative interventions so that we can reach to a level where we will say that political parties are stable. If you choose to be independent, you should decide from day one and you are independent. Germany has independent Members of the Bundestag who are very few; like 12, but they are there. In fact, right now, they are in the ruling coalition because of their sturdiness in democracy. So, we are not just going to leave it for 2027. The sweetness is that we have, as a Committee, decided to delete it. We will persuade the Leader of the Majority Party to let this sweetener be here so that, at least, we are assuaged that The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}