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{
    "id": 1427604,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1427604/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 328,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Orwoba",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "a Speaker--- We even have a presidential term limit. That has nothing to do with opposing or limiting someone’s political career. It is simply streamlining the political industry. I have also heard people quoting our Constitution. However, they forget to highlight that particular phrase that says: “Unreasonable restriction.” Is it not reasonable that we say, because of a conflict of interest, we do not want someone to serve as a judge? We have had former governors who somehow end up in committees that play oversight on their former administrations. Obviously, there is a conflict of interest. There are former governors in this House. With due respect to them, we now have Sen. Ali Roba and Sen. Mandago. Sen. Ali Roba is the Chairperson of the Committee on Finance and Budget. There are a number of oversight activities that we are doing for previous administrations of county governments. He has to be a prefect of his former colleagues. Already, there is a conflict of interest. The spirit of this Bill has nothing to do with limiting anyone’s rights. It has everything to do with oversight and ensuring that those who intend to take up offices, governors particularly, understand that you are not going to be a governor then come to the Senate to cover up corrupt dealings that your administration was involved in. I have gone through the Report of the Committee on Justice, Legal Affairs and Human Rights on the same. The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) strongly supports this Bill. That is an indication that they also feel the pain in terms of how to hold these people accountable. You have a former governor that was involved in corrupt dealings, who is now a Senator enjoying privileges of this House. One of the privileges is that they get to influence the spirit of oversight committees. How then does the EACC operate independently without any coercion and deal with a situation like that? It is difficult. Sometimes we put so many expectations on these independent bodies, but when you look at the arrangement of our politics, it is impossible to deal with corruption, this being one of the reasons. Back to Article 38 of our Constitution, many people quote by saying that it talks about political rights and that there is what you can do and what you cannot, and what you must not take away from me in terms of political rights. We are not saying that we are stopping former governors from vying, we are saying that just as we are talking about the term limits of the presidential or the gubernatorial candidates, we are putting a limitation. Immediately after your tenure as a governor, you cool off for five years. This is so that you do not have an opportunity to go to the Senate or the county assembly to meddle with the affairs of your corrupt dealings and interfere with the oversight arm. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I have also heard Sen. Cherarkey say that we might say that governors are not immune to oversight after they leave office. Yes, we understand they are not immune. You can actively investigate a former governor through the processes of this oversight House by putting in petitions and having committees go in to look at the audits. However, what we are saying is that the presence of that particular individual in that House during that time of audit and investigation is obviously going to affect the outcome in one way or another. Either, through intimidation, influence or whatever it is, in one way or another. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only.A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and Audio Services,Senate."
}