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{
    "id": 1204804,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1204804/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 558,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kikuyu, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Besides fighting on the question of jurisdiction when they appeared before the Committee, which was in full view of cameras, their counsel withdrew from the proceedings of the Committee. Subsequently, they also submitted to the jurisdiction of the same Committee when they sought again to appear and cross-examine the petitioners but with a lot of delaying tactics. I must commend all the members of the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs Committee who conducted themselves with a lot of decorum. There was one sitting that looked like a law school class. I think the legal counsel had anticipated to find accountants like me in the JLAC. To their surprise, they found seasoned and senior lawyers like Wakili Muriu, wakili Osoro, wakili Njeri, Hon. Member for Kirinyaga and others including Hon. Mutuse and the Chairperson himself, Sir George. The members of this Committee burnt the midnight oil to even have this Report ready. We must commend them. The other thing worth noting is that, in the history of this country, we have IEBC that have been fought left, right and centre. In fact, there are people who say that the most dangerous job to take up in this country is one of being a Commissioner of the IEBC. Indeed, it is because of what the political class of this country has subjected Commissioners of IEBC to. It is worth noting that this is the first time in the history of all IEBCs that we have set up in this country, that we are seeing due process being followed in the removal or otherwise of commissioners. Members will recall of Chesoni, Kivuitu and Isaak Hassan who were removed through street demonstrations and riots around town to force them out of office. We must commend this Committee and the country. Our democracy now has become of age. We are removing people from offices in line with our statutes and the Constitution. I must commend this House. We must be proud that as the 13th Assembly, we are presiding over a process that follows due process. We have not had to get anybody to the streets despite the violation of our Constitution and statutes, these Commissioners engaged in during the electioneering process. The fateful day in Bomas of Kenya is equivalent to 6th January 2021 when there was an attempted takeover of the Capital in the United States of America (USA). We model our democracy along the operations of other well grown democracies like that of the USA. We must not, as a country, ever allow something like what happened in Bomas of Kenya on that day to ever happen again. These Commissioners were going to burn this country. It is sad. It is rather poetic justice or ironical that the people who agitated for the removal of Commissioners through riots and street demonstrations are today speaking about street demonstrations to protect Commissioners who have violated our Constitution, abused the people of Kenya and attempted to stage a coup against the sovereign will of the people of Kenya that was exercised in democratic, free and fair elections. Hon. Speaker, I have no fear of contradiction to state that these Commissioners are indeed people who should be in the category of criminals because they wanted to burn our country. They were prodded by people who made them believe they had power over the people of Kenya, whose sovereign authority is given to them by Article 104 of the Constitution."
}