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    "id": 369734,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/369734/?format=api",
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    "content": "However, I have the honour and privilege of serving on this Committee. While I support the Report, I wish to echoe the remarks of my Chairman, hon. Chepkonga and the remarks of the Seconder, hon. Kajwang, on the issue of regional balance and the recommendation of the Committee that the President needs to look at this again; next time he should look at the wider picture of Kenya. It has been said and I agree that the nominee is qualified for this position. When hon. Kajwang said that we have a collective responsibility, I was dismayed when the Leader of Majority Party said that there is no question of collective responsibility in Committees. We agree that as much as possible, committees should arrive at conclusions by consensus. In the last Parliament, I served in the same Committee and I know of an instance when the Committee was divided, and insisted on having a dissenting opinion from the opinion presented in the Report. The effect of that was that Parliament was divided. The result was that the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs was paralysed for the rest of the Parliament’s life. So, we tried to avoid a repeat of that as much as we could. That is the lesson that should be learnt. As we look at this, I think the appointment to the post of Solicitor-General is coming at a time when there are serious issues for that office to look at. One of them is the accrual of damages against the Government by courts running into billions of shillings, and which Kenyans cannot access because of the blanket protection provided by the Government Proceedings Act, Cap. 40, Laws of Kenya. This is an issue we have taken up with the office of the Attorney-General, and we are insisting that unless the office of the Attorney-General is willing to look at proper amendments to that Act then the House will have to deal with it and open the flood gates to execution of warrants against the State. So, that is one of the challenges that Mr. Muturi, if approved by this House, will have to face and deal with as a matter of urgency. Hon. Speaker, Sir, as we look at the position of the Solicitor-General, we must understand that Kenyans look upon this office as the protector of the public good, and the office should attract good lawyers and retain them in their positions. Right now, the Office of the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General are like training grounds for lawyers. They get in, get experience and walk out to look for more lucrative positions. This is something that the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), and all Kenyans need to look at. As we look at this report, it is important that as much as possible – indeed it is advisable at times to have humour in the House - we must be very serious. If a Kenyan deserves, they deserve. We should not look at regions as if the Office of the Attorney-General is composed of one region; it is important that the Solicitor-General nominee, if approved by the House, must carry out an audit of the staffing of his Office to find out if it is possible to have regional balance."
}