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{
    "id": 1523480,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1523480/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 426,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Rarieda, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) Otiende Amollo",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " I was explaining that the Report gives us two options for the two-thirds gender principle. We could go for top-up, create special seats or do what Hon. Caroli was suggesting. The Committee settled for the top-up option. I will talk about it. Thirdly, the Committee had an eye on legality throughout. Whatever proposal is made must be consistent with the law. I am happy to associate myself with the Report of the Committee. My only divergence is in three points. The first point is on the proposed amendment to Article 103 of the Constitution on vacation of office by a Member of Parliament, and the same would go for a governor or member of a county assembly. One would vacate office by resigning or being deregistered from a political party in circumstances that would then be indicated. The point here is that our Constitution has provision for deeming someone who has left a political party. That provision has never been implemented in the 14 years that we have had the Constitution. Why? This is because it requires the Speaker to do something else. The Speaker must trigger its implementation by saying that a Member is deemed to have resigned from a political party. As long as you do not present a letter, the Speaker will not deem you to have left a political party. This has brought a very untidy situation. The position should be that, when I am elected as a Member of Parliament… Hon. Temporary Speaker, you are elected as a Member of Parliament for Ugenya Constituency on a Movement for Democracy and Growth (MDG) ticket. There are people who elected you because of who you are and those who elected you because of the party. If you decide that the party is no longer important enough, then you should face your electorate. That is what the proposal sought to achieve, but the Committee rejected it. I am persuaded, and on this, I was with Hon. T.J. Kajwang’, that, that provision should not be thrown out as the Committee has proposed. It should be included, so that we have political hygiene. People should not just criss-cross parties all over and think nothing of it. Hon. Temporary Speaker, you will add me a little more time because I have points of divergence. I am going beyond the Report and I want to speak on three things only."
}