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{
    "id": 492868,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/492868/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 175,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Sakaja",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13131,
        "legal_name": "Johnson Arthur Sakaja",
        "slug": "johnson-arthur-sakaja"
    },
    "content": "rest of us. What is this spirit? I am not a lawyer, but I am a student of the law. I am sure hon. Kaluma will agree with me that the spirit of the Constitution can negate the letter of the Constitution. The spirit of the Constitution is not given to a few individuals who are more legal or spiritual for them to understand what the Constitution really means. Therefore, let us not have these games when you do not have a point; you say that the spirit of the Constitution does not allow Cabinet Secretaries to come to this House. This is a sitting of a Committee and we are not introducing Cabinet Secretaries to Parliament. They have been coming to committees of this House and they will keep coming. I hope we are clear on this. Finally, I would just like to encourage the Clerk’s office to give the rules and procedures that guide the operations of the Committee on General Oversight to all hon. Members, so that they can know how to transact business during the Committee sitting. But all in all, it is an innovation that has been brought about by this House for better understanding between the Executive and the Legislature. I hope that going forward we can look at other platforms through which we can engage better. This is because everything we and the Executive do is ultimately for the benefit of Kenyans. Every hon. Member here represents people; even those who were elected through party lists; the ones you call nominated. There is no hon. Member here who is nominated. We also took the oath of being elected through a party list. We represent the youth and women, for example, hon. (Dr.) Oginga represents workers and there are issues that workers have that need to be heard coming from Cabinet Secretaries. I hope even those who are watching and who are not from this institution--- People from the Executive or the Judiciary must understand that Parliament has not done this to flex legislative muscle or to show that we are the bosses. This is for the interest of Kenyans; Parliament debates issues of interest to Kenyans. Hon. Speaker, we have seen over the past one year frustration of this House when Chairmen of Committees do not give satisfactory answers on certain issues. That does not mean that the Chairs of Committees are not working. In fact, they are doing their best and they must be applauded. But on certain issues, not all hon. Members can attend the Departmental Committee on Administration and National Security. Let us sit here together as hon. Members and let the Speaker--- In fact, if an hon. Member refers to you as “Speaker” during that Committee sitting, kindly tell him or her that you are not the Speaker in that Committee. You are just the Chair, in the same way you chair the House Business Committee and other committees. With those remarks, I want to stop here and applaud the Cabinet Secretaries who came today and especially hon. (Mrs.) Ngilu, who actually answered questions before the Committee on General Oversight. I want to assure the House that the rest will be coming from next week. I think you heard the communication from the Leader of Majority Party."
}