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{
    "id": 1425295,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1425295/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 232,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Tabitha Mutinda",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Looking at issues raised in this Bill, it is a monopoly that the National Assembly wants to acquire and yet the Constitution is very clear that we are the ‘Upper’ House. I will give an example with Nairobi County, which I also represent. Our elected Senator for Nairobi has 17 constituencies. Tell me, how one person in the National Assembly, a Member of Parliament (MP) who has only one constituency would want to come and demean a Member who has over 17 constituencies and 85 wards? Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, that is trying to ignore what this House is doing. We are representatives of counties and we have our mandate. You and I and other Members sit in the Senate Business Committee (SBC). It is sad that I can now tell the root cause of all these problems. This is because when we joined Senate and started serving this committee, we found court cases that were even there before. This is an indication that this is something that has existed for long and it is time, through the Leadership of both Houses to have closure on these issues and all these court cases. There are court cases for both Houses. It is time we put a stop to them. If at this time we are discussing a bicameral Bill, then it is because we have given room for that. I challenge the Leadership of both Houses to take the lead and ensure that some of these issues are sorted. On Article 118, public participation is a key and a constitutional role. It says- “Parliament – (a) shall conduct its business in an open manner, and its sittings and those of its committees shall be open to the public.” Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, although it has not taken off, but with the current Bunge Tower, there is provision of live airing of all committee proceedings in both the National Assembly and the Senate for members of the public to see and understand the work that goes on in those Houses. Public participation was not done according to what the committee has mentioned. If this process was not conducted, then why are we having this Bill at this particular point? The Bill talks about when a committee or a Member raises these issues, they will be committing an offence. Those are what we call mere threats. I do not find these kinds of provisions that threaten the Members constitutional from where I sit. It is sad that we can have Bills trying to give threats instead of offering long-term solutions. We have seen that the Senate budget is the lowest in the whole Parliament, and yet some of these costs, like the court cases, are borne by the Senate. This is an unnecessary cost because some of the issues are already in place within the Constitution. If they are taken care of, we do not need to have legal costs still in place that need to be taken care of. Otherwise, those funds should be used in other ways in ensuring that we have maximum public participation as per Article 118 of the Constitution. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, with those few words, I beg to disagree completely with this Bill. If you would allow, because soon we are going on recess, we could even close on this Bill today, and vote on it as early as tomorrow. Let us focus on Bills that will help us move forward."
}