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{
    "id": 289338,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/289338/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 198,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Speaker",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Hon. Members, I have one Communication to make which I undertook to do this afternoon. This is with respect to The Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill of 2012 which today is appearing on the Order Paper. Yesterday, Tuesday, 29th May, 2012, after the Attorney-General had made certain undertakings relating to how he proposed to proceed with prosecution of The Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, I made a ruling to the effect that the Speaker will hold the Attorney-General to his word in respect of those clauses which, in his opinion, raised important questions of constitutionality and that, for all purposes, those clause specifically recited by the Attorney-General would stand withdrawn and the Attorney- General will not be permitted to move them in the Committee Stage on the Bill. Several hon. Members subsequently stood on points of order contesting a number of other clauses in The Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, 2012 and urging the Speaker to rule that the clauses are unconstitutional or otherwise inappropriate and should be similarly withdrawn. These hon. Members were Dr. Khalwale, Mr. Mbadi and Eng. Rege. I then promised to give a ruling today covering the concerns of these hon. Members as well as those aspects spoken to by other hon. Members last Thursday and in respect of which a ruling from the Speaker had been sought. Hon. Members, arising from the points of order raised by Mr. Mbadi last Thursday and endorsed with further observations by Mrs. Odhiambo-Mabona and the other points of order raised yesterday, the outstanding propositions on which I will rule are as follows:- (i) That the scope of the amendments proposed to the various statutes under the Bill including, as an example, those to the Energy and Communications Act is such that there are substantive issues being canvassed in the Bill and they required, according to the Constitution public participation and separate publication in Bills, and further that introducing such substantive amendments in the form of a Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill would deny the people of Kenya their right to participate in the legislative process. (ii) That some amendments proposed in The Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, 2012, and specifically the amendments relating to the Elections Act and the Industrial Court Act are unconstitutional and should be withdrawn. (iii) That when a claim of unconstitutionality is made, the House should not proceed with the debate or other proceedings on the business in hand until a determination by the Speaker has been made."
}