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{
    "id": 1406376,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1406376/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 302,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Embakasi South, WDM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Julius Mawathe",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "and political parties. There is need to talk about their independence. If the referee is not neutral, there is a chance of there being squabbles. In the last three elections, we have had post-election issues and challenges. That falls back on how IEBC and the referee are perceived to have performed. This time we must come up with a referee who does not favour either side. This is why putting together a bigger panel is better since they come from across the board. There is also the issue of the independence of IEBC. It must be independent. I am talking about the delimitation of boundaries because it affects us, especially the Members of Parliament for Nairobi County and the surrounding areas. If you look at Embakasi South Constituency, the population has grown by approximately 84 per cent. That is from a population of 300,000 to about 580,000 people with 169,000 registered voters. There is need to subdivide such constituencies. Out of the 290 constituencies, some have about 60,000 or 80,000 residents. Some of those constituencies have a higher population than some counties. Embakasi South Constituency has a higher population than Tharaka Nithi or Lamu counties. We need to figure out a way to delimit those constituencies and reduce their population sizes. During the delimitation of constituencies in 2011/2012, we did not have skyscrapers in Pipeline area. Most buildings currently have 10 floors or more. Buildings in slum areas did not even have a first floor back then. Therefore, we need to think about how we will delimit the constituencies and reduce their population sizes. Nairobi’s population was about 2 million. It is now 4.6 to 4.8 million. We need to delimit and subdivide the constituencies, not only within Nairobi County that had been given a provision to subdivide constituencies and get an additional 12 constituencies, but also places like Kiambu. I know there is the discussion that delimitation of constituencies should not be based on population size alone. However, we serve human beings who form the population. Some constituencies carry a slightly heavier population load than others. I support the Bill."
}