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{
    "id": 477694,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/477694/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 234,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Ms.) Kajuju",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 840,
        "legal_name": "Florence Kajuju",
        "slug": "florence-kajuju"
    },
    "content": "In as far as the Criminal Procedure Code is concerned; you will find that it speaks to the issues of bail that have been subjected to the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs. We know that the Constitution provides for courts to grant bail unless there are compelling reasons that have been put before the court to show that the court should decline to grant bail. Otherwise, as per the Constitution, no matter the crime that one is alleged to have committed, they are entitled to bail as a matter of right and not as a matter of the discretion of the court. Through an amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code we shall be looking at the issues and the conditions which a court should be guided by to decline to grant bail. If you look at the Prisons Act--- I am proud to say that we are seeking to amend the Prisons Act, so that we reflect the provisions of the Power of Mercy Act. I was lucky and honoured by the former President, hon. Mwai Kibaki, to appoint me to serve in the Power of Mercy Committee. The Power of Mercy Committee is established under Article 133 of the Constitution. What used to exist before the Power of Mercy Committee came to be was the Board of Review; there were various challenges that were being encountered by prisoners under the Board of Review. Now that we have the Power of Mercy Committee in existence, all issues about prisoners are looked at to recommend to the President who then is able to grant pardon to prisoners in prison, especially those who have served long terms in prison and have proved that they have reformed so much that they can easily be integrated into the community. Therefore, we are seeking to amend the Prisons Act to be in tandem with Article 133 of the Constitution that sets up the Power of Mercy Committee. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, a look at other Bills that are amended in this Bill shows that the Kenya Airports Authority Act seeks to increase the number of independent board members from two to five. This is in tandem with the principle of inclusivity that is in the Constitution. This is so that we have more members participating in this board for purposes of transparency and accountability. A look at various other Bills that are contained in this Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill like the one that legislates for the Kenya School Law (KSL) tends to give the KSL the legal power to charge its property. I also served the KSL through a nomination of the LSK to the Council of Legal Education (CLE). I am aware that the KSL and now the CLE, which are now separate bodies, they were not able at that point in time to charge properties or to borrow loans using their properties or assets as collateral. What the law is seeking to do is to allow the KSL to borrow property from banks, take loans or use that which they have as security to get loans. I am also alive to the fact that there is limited funding from the Government. So through this amendment, the KSL will have the capacity to acquire property or loans and develop itself in the near future. The Bill seeks to amend the provisions of the Legal Education Act, 2012 to provide that only someone who has had legal education training can serve as the Chairperson of the Council of Legal Education. This Bill seeks to open up the space, so that an advocate who has been practising for 15 years can be appointed, or nominated, to serve as the chairperson of the Council of Legal Education. This means that we shall be looking at a wider experience, so that any other person who is qualified need not to be a professor in a university, or need not to have dealt with legal training to be able to seek to be nominated as the chairperson of the Council of Legal Education Board. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}