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{
"id": 290431,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/290431/?format=api",
"text_counter": 394,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Wamalwa",
"speaker_title": "The Minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs",
"speaker": {
"id": 148,
"legal_name": "Eugene Ludovic Wamalwa",
"slug": "eugene-wamalwa"
},
"content": "Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, to restore confidence in the Judiciary, it will not only take the laws we have put in place; it will take commitment and hard work by people who believe in reforms. I was very privileged as the Ministry charged, to have witnessed the launching of the transformative framework of the Judiciary by the Chief Justice, Dr. Willy Mutunga. It is truly a new beginning for the Judiciary. But for the board to continue and to accomplish the remaining task, it is not possible or practical for this to be done within the three months period. As we speak, this board has started vetting the High Court Judges. They have about 44 judges and looking at the amount of time they took to deal with just nine, we will need to give them more time for them to deal with 44 judges and the time has already lapsed. So the proposal we are making to Section 23 is really to extend the time which would still be provided for under Section 23(1); that this must be done within one year and that will still accomplish the purpose for which we passed the law. So we are proposing just deletion of Section 23(2) and this would give them up to next year. We are also proposing that if that period expires before they have accomplished what they have set out to do, they can still come back to the House by way of Motion to ask for an extension of time. This is one of the proposals we have made in this Bill but the other urgent one is the one for the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TKRC). When I was appointed, we had a problem with the TJRC because of the challenges they were facing between the chairman and the commissioners but we challenged them that if they were unable to reconcile their own differences as a Commission, how were they going to reconcile the country which is their core mandate? I wish to congratulate the Chairman, Mr. Kiplagat and all the commissioners for setting aside their differences for the sake of the country to ensure that they complete their work. They were at the tail end of their mission and they were in the process of preparing a report. This report we are looking forward to, as a nation, we are hoping it will provide the roadmap to healing and reconciliation in our country and their period has expired because under the Act, they were supposed to submit their report to the President by 3rd May. However, with the proposed extension that we are proposing to amend under Section 30, it will have an extension of three months to enable them complete their report. They will also have an option of 45 days for winding up. So we will be asking the House that it is important that we give the TJRC the necessary support to ensure that they complete their work and give this country a roadmap to healing and reconciliation. This, coincidentally, as we go round this country we know that this country has not healed. We see the politics of hate; the politics of isolation and the politics of demonization in our country. We believe that the time has come for us to reform our politics. The TJRC, in their extended period that we are asking for, is capable of dealing with not just the issues that we have raised but also issues of historical injustices including the issue of the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) at the Coast. We believe that they had occasion to travel to the Coast and we thank the Speaker for intervening in the MRC matter to direct that the same be handled by two committees of this House. We believe that they should move with speed because the MRC is a ticking time bomb that we need to deal with. We believe the TJRC that had occasion to interview the people of the Coast, to listen to the historical injustices, in their report they will also be able to make appropriate recommendations that will help this nation to go a long way in resolving the ticking time bomb that is the MRC at the Coast. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, we also believe that apart from these other commissions, we have commissions that we have put in place whose time is lapsing in September. We have the case of the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) and Dr. Kibunjia has done a commendable job with his Commission. We believe that because of the timing of the expiry of their term, they will need time and we are proposing that there should be a specific provision for reappointment that was lacking in the Act that we passed. We are proposing an amendment to Section 19 to enable reappointment of these commissioners. Similarly, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) which is another commission under my Ministry will have their term expire in November, soon after the NCIC. We are proposing that the Act, which does not provide for commencement of the recruitment process prior to the expiry, be amended so that we can allow through amendment of Section 59 for an earlier commencement of the reappointment process. In fact, we are proposing that if we could allow this process to commence a few months prior to the expiry of the term, then we will be able, as a nation, to have a commission in place. As we go into the general elections, we cannot have an election without a human rights commission. We are aware that during elections, this is the time when abuses of human rights occur and we cannot risk having the term of this commission in November. We believe that only one commissioner will be left. Out of the commissioners who are there, there is only one whose term will expire after November. So the rest will have their terms expire in November and without the provision to allow for recruitment to commence before then, we will have all the commissioners packing and going home and go through the elections without a commission. The process might take months and the elections being in March and expiry being in November, we might not have a commission in place before the elections. Therefore, we are asking the House to allow for these amendments to provide for a very critical institution that is necessary in the electoral process. We also have a problem in the Ministry because of two commissions. There has been confusion between two commissions; the KNHRC and the National Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC) which also by the definition of Section 2 includes a component of human rights. We have heard people come to our Ministry thinking that we are the ones responsible for the NGEC when we are only responsible for the KNHRC. Therefore, we are proposing an amendment to ensure that we remove the confusion that has been there. We should amend Section 2 to delete the words “human rights” from the definition of this Commission which would totally make it very clear that this is not part of the KNHRC and it is purely a commission under the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Development. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, we also have an amendment that we have proposed to Section 112 of the Elections Act with regard to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC). We were at pains to come up with a way of ensuring that by-elections are held in Kangema after we lost Mr. Michuki - May the good Lord rest his soul in eternal peace. We have no specific provision in the Act that in essence repeals the National Assembly and Presidential Act, Cap.7. This is a necessary amendment just for purposes of clarity. There are those who have argued that we can go ahead and still carry on the election under the old Act but it is repealed. The Speaker to issue writs without a specific provision - the old Act having been repealed - is one of the issues that we are proposing just for purposes of clarity. I am urging Members to allow for this amendment, so that we can have a by- election carried out under the old law before the first general election. There are those public servants who have complained about the period within which they need to resign from their positions. We have talked about seven months and they feel greatly disadvantaged that others will do it within three months. They must resign seven months to the election. With the debate that has been going on, we are proposing that we have an amendment to reduce the number of months from seven to five although there are those who have proposed that it should come down to three or four. We leave it to the House. I wish to give the other Members a chance to contribute. This Statute (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill has very key proposals. Let us support and pass the Bill."
}