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{
    "id": 1281391,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1281391/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 217,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Seme, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) James Nyikal",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Hon. Temporary Chairman, I beg to move: THAT, the Bill be amended by deleting Clause 6. Hon. Temporary Speaker, this amendment seeks to delete the whole of Clause 6, which seeks to amend Section 7 of the Bill on members of the council. As it is, the council is constituted as follows: 1. Cabinet Secretary responsible for Environment and Climate; 2. Cabinet Secretary responsible for National Treasury; 3. Cabinet Secretary responsible for Economic Planning; 4. Cabinet Secretary responsible for Energy: 5. The Chairperson of the Council of Governors; 6. A representative of the Private Sector nominated by a body representing the largest number of private institutions; 7. A representative from the Civil Society nominated by the most representative registered national umbrella association of civil societies, 8. Representative of a marginalized community within the meaning of Article 260 of the Constitution who has knowledge and experience in matters relating to this; and, 9. A representative of the academia nominated by the Commission of the University Education (CUE). Hon. Temporary Chairman, this Amendment Bill seeks to ensure that all the Cabinet Secretaries sit in the council. Still, the actual stakeholders, who would include representatives of the Private Sector Alliance to be nominated by the body with the largest number of institutions in the private sector, will not appoint, select, or identify a nominee to represent them in the council. Instead, the nomination will be done by the President. The same thing happens when you come to the Civil Society Organizations representative. The civil societies themselves will, again, not nominate, select, or appoint, but one of them shall be selected by the President to represent them in the council. Coming to the representative of the academia, again, he will not be nominated by the Commission of University Education. Hon. Temporary Chairman, we will end up with a council that the President will nominate. There is a saving grace: all the nominees will be brought to Parliament for vetting. However, if you have an institution where the President nominates all the council members, you are just making it a department of Government. The stakeholders will have no say because their representatives in the council will be indebted to the person who would have appointed them. Even though they will be representing their various institutions, the institutions would not have brought them on board. That way, we will weaken the council to the extent that it will be an arm of the Government. In fact, it will be an instrument of the President. It may be good that the President will have too much power over the council, but he needs varied views from various stakeholders to make a decision. Therefore, I propose we delete this Clause and leave the council as it is in the previous Bill. With those remarks, I beg to move. 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."
}