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{
    "id": 468190,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/468190/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 49,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Ethuro",
    "speaker_title": "July 9, 2013 SENATE DEBATES 5 The Speaker",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 158,
        "legal_name": "Ekwee David Ethuro",
        "slug": "ekwee-ethuro"
    },
    "content": " Order! Order, hon. Senators! Let me dispose of the issue of whether Sen. Kanainza is young, she is a woman or a Senator. In my view, what Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale said was actually that in his delegation is another Senator; and he went ahead to describe the kind of Senator we have. So, actually, Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale was qualifying that the Senators in his delegation are young, she also happens to be a woman and also a woman who is a youth. I think for any doubting Thomases, that should rest the matter; now you know how to handle the hon. Senator, who is a Member of the Kakamega Delegation. Now, let me move on to the more substantive matter raised by Sen. Kipchumba Murkomen on whether any Member of the delegation can vote while the head of the delegation is present. If you look at the Standing Order guiding us there – Standing Order No.68(2) – and the Constitution in Article 123(4)(a), Standing Order 68 reads:- “On election, all Senators who were registered as voters in a particular county shall collectively constitute a single delegation for purposes of paragraph (2) and the Senator elected under Article 98 (1)(a) of the Constitution shall be the head of the delegation.” So there, we are defining the delegation and who is the head, according to Article 68(1). So, in Standing Order No.68(2), it says:- “Except as otherwise provided in the Constitution, in any matter in the Senate affecting counties- (a) each county delegation shall have one vote to be cast on behalf of the county by the head of the county delegation or, in the absence of the head of the delegation, by another member of the delegation designated by the head of the delegation;” Obviously, the honorable Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale decided that he was not going to take the words in between the commas, because the operational words are “absent” and the word “or.” Now, if you look at the exceptions – assuming that there are exceptions provided in the Constitution – we look at Article 123(4)(a) of the Constitution, which says:- “Each county delegation shall have one vote to be cast on behalf of the county by the head of the county delegation or, in the absence of the head of the delegation, by another member of the delegation designated by the head of the delegation;” Basically, we repeated the same constitutional provision in the Standing Orders for purposes of clarity and to avoid any doubts. So, I am afraid to make the determination; and even before I do so, just check Standing Order No.68(2)(b), which says:- “the person who votes on behalf of a delegation shall determine whether or not to vote in support of or against the matter after consulting the other members of the delegation;” Obviously, Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, in his infinite wisdom, wanted to dispense with the requirement to consult the hon. Member of his delegation who was previously present and wanted to make life easier. Unfortunately, according to Article 98(1)(a), Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, you are the head of delegation because the people of Kakamega voted for you; The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}