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"speaker_name": "Mr. Orengo",
"speaker_title": "The Minister for Lands",
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"content": " Thank you very much, your Excellency the Vice- 3944 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES December 9, 2008 President and Leader of Government Business. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I stand to support the Motion that Mr. Speaker do now Leave the Chair. I do not know whether the word \"doth\" would have been more appropriate. Maybe, we should have had an amendment in the Standing Order to the effect that, that type of English should go away from our vocabulary. That notwithstanding, and without taking a lot of time, I also want to join the Vice- President and Minister for Home Affairs in commending the work of the Standing Orders Committee. Indeed, it is not by accident that you piloted this process. I am sure that even if you had not been elected Speaker, you would have vigorously been part of this process, knowing that in the previous Parliament, you stood firmly for institutional reforms, which included, not only the Constitution-making process, but also the way we conduct business in the House. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am glad that the preface of your Report states out clearly why it was necessary to review the Standing Orders. It would be sheer repetition to go into it. The 14 reasons found on paragraph eight on page five of the preface are very comprehensive. More significantly, again, on page six, you point out the new constitutional arrangement that there is in the country, by virtue of the National Accord, which became part of the principal law of this country. Therefore, what these Standing Orders seek to do is very important. It is important to note that even without these proposed Standing Orders being part of the Standing Orders of the House, this Tenth Parliament has, really, from day one, taken its role as an important institution in our democracy. We have pushed to every limit that is necessary for the Legislature to play its part in governance. Let it not be said that our duty is just to make laws. Mr. Speaker, Sir, already, the oversight roles of Parliament are quite evident. Hon. Members on the Opposite side of the House, like Dr. Khalwale, have taken full measures in trying to ensure that, that oversight role of Parliament is, indeed, fully institutionalised, if not constitutionalised - that is, if we get along with the business of constitution-making. So, I really appreciate the fact that you have pointed out in the Objectives of the Review, that one of the things that the Standing Orders are seeking to do is to enhance the oversight role of Parliament. In any modern democracy, if the oversight role of Parliament is not institutionalised, then it is very difficult for a Government to behave responsibly and accountably. Mr. Speaker, Sir, there is also what the Vice-President and Minister for Home Affairs has been talking about - that he should get an opportunity to spell out the business of the House at certain designated times and, of course, the Prime-Minister's Time. These are issues we need to look into, to make our democracy more dynamic and more accountable. What we are trying to achieve at the end of the day is to bring the Executive to Parliament, and not take Parliament to the Executive. That is what I am seeing in these Standing Orders. From previous experience, I know that Parliament was just an off-shoot of the Executive. In fact, the theory goes that if you are not very careful, you may have an Executive dictatorship in Parliament, if we go by the Westminster model, where the party with the majority is the party in Government. That would ensure that the party in Government can more or less have its way in Parliament at all times. Mr. Speaker, Sir, however, if we institutionalise the kind of thing that I see in these Standing Orders, it will not matter which party will be in control. Parliament, as an institution, will always be able to play its oversight role. That is critical for a modern country, which is trying to grow into a middle-income country, in the next 30 years or so. I hope we will be there to ensure that, that happens. However, to ensure that it happens, we need that oversight role of Parliament to be institutionalised. With those few remarks, I beg to second and urge the House to get you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, out of the Chair as quickly as possible. December 9, 2008 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 3945"
}