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"id": 176542,
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"speaker_name": "Mr. Affey",
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"content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to contribute to this Report. First of all, I would like to congratulate the Minister for steering this Ministry in a manner that it is supported by the rest of this country. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Kriegler Commission was as a result of the dispute that we had over the election results. It is not right, even as we disband the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK), that we wholesomely condemn the electoral body. It is not right that we hold the ECK responsible for the violence that we had. This goes beyond the ECK. It was as a result of the indiscipline of the political class that we witnessed violence and deaths in this country. We must discipline our politicians and unite this country because all of us belong to this one country, and that politics is not a means to an end but rather a way of moving this country forward. Even if we get a commission that is wholly composed of foreigners and if we are not disciplined politically, this country will be in dire need of commissions every time we go to election. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, even as we disband the ECK, I do not think the violent reaction that we had in this country was as a result of a mere announcement. It does not take an announcement to kill. There is nowhere in law where it says even if the results are not fair, you 3912 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES December 4, 2008 have a right to kill Kenyans or burn children in churches, houses or schools. There is no justification for what we did. So, we need to change our mind set. We need to design a new way of managing our politics. I do not even understand why we should make the ECK staff to suffer. I would like to request the Minister, and I hope she will pay a little attention to me, disbanding the ECK staff together with the Commission, is punishing them for no apparent reason. Even if we have to disband the 22-member Commission, I request the Minister, for Heaven's sake, to make sure that she retains the staff at the ECK. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, we have secretaries and other officials at the ECK, who have nothing to do with what might have happened in the Boardroom where the Commissioners decided the election results. Therefore, to condemn wholesome, the Commission, together with staff, will not be fair to the Kenyans who are working there. In any case, we will replace them with other Kenyans. So, why sack them if we have to replace them with other Kenyans? What is the difference between those who are working there now and those we intend to replace them with? So, let us be very careful how we deal with this matter. Finally, on the issue of constituencies that my colleague from Juja has just spoken about, it is high time that we reviewed our constituencies. However, there is no possibility of basing the number of constituencies on population. This country has constituencies which are as large as Central Province and Rift Valley provinces combined! So, if we are to change, we could adopt a new principle of one kilometre, one vote, and not one man, one vote."
}