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{
    "id": 490675,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/490675/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 104,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Murkomen",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 440,
        "legal_name": "Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen",
        "slug": "kipchumba-murkomen"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I think the point of order raised by Sen. Elachi is very important. There is a growing trend that the Judiciary, an institution that we have a lot of trust and we are supposed to have a lot of trust in – is beginning to micro manage other institutions of Government, particularly this House. I have never seen anywhere in the world where judicial activism - however criticized it has been all over the world - has been exercised by the courts as against institutions that are carrying out matters of accountability. Mr. Speaker, Sir, judicial activism is a new concept; it is about 20 years old all over the world, used more so in countries like India and to a great extent in South Africa, among others. But even all that activism has always been used to tilt in favor of public interest, particularly in situations where you are protecting the public. In India, it is in environmental cases; in South Africa, it is about issues of democracy and matters of race relationships, human rights and so on, and so forth. In Europe, it is the same; it is fostering matters of human rights. Actually, one of the most conservative judiciary in the world is the American Judiciary. But if you come to our Judiciary, which has adopted this activism of micromanaging other institutions--- I am shocked as a Member of the County Public Accounts and Investments Committee (CPAIC), ably led by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, that the courts of this country can even attempt to stop the Senate of this Republic from inviting any Governor to appear before this Committee. It even bothers me more for the simple reason that more than 80 per cent of the Governors we have invited have appeared either by themselves or their deputies. But at the request of less than 20 per cent of the Governors, the courts can be willing to stop the questioning of matters of accountability maybe at the behest of two or three Governors, as if there is a stratification of a class of Governors of this country; that there are certain Governors that are more important than others. What is it that two or three Governors or the Chairman of the Council of Governors, the Governor for Bomet, have that is so special that the Governor of Tana River, the Governor of Elgeyo-Marakwet who appeared today or the Governor for Kwale, who is the Vice-Chair of the Council of Governors, do not have? What is this special category of Governors in this country that collude with the courts to stop this House from working? There were days when I was a student in the University of Nairobi. One of the things that Ahmednasir, who is a lawyer in this country, did was to resign from Law School to go and carry out some activism to remove certain Judges who were 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."
}