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{
    "id": 512029,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/512029/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 86,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Musimba",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1804,
        "legal_name": "Patrick Mweu Musimba",
        "slug": "patrick-mweu-musimba"
    },
    "content": "I have completed. The Office of the Speaker, as espoused in Article 107 of this Constitution, is a serious office. It is, indeed, a constitutional one. The guidance to this is under Article 106. Article 97(1)(d) makes the Speaker a Member of Parliament. In accordance with the Articles within Chapter Six, the Speaker is held to account as a State officer, as the face and voice of this National Assembly. In his capacity as the Chairman of the Parliamentary Service Commission, he oversees the role of both Houses in the manner unto which we conduct our businesses. His primary responsibility is in protecting the dignity of the National Assembly. The requirement that Parliament must retain the confidence of the Kenyan people is best espoused by the fact that over 10,000 Members have gone through this House and they all look unto us to keep this esteem for posterity. The future of this great Republic looks upon this Assembly. This Assembly represents the faces of 42 million Kenyans. The actions of our Speaker, in degrading Members through utterances, pose a great security threat to this nation. This is because if the people we represent lose faith in Parliament, anarchy will prevail because we are the epitomization of the rule of law. Just to cite the Speaker at the opening Address of this august House, he describes Parliament accurately as the citadel of our democracy through which the nation knows the political philosophy and economic strategy of our Government, in governance of the people of the Republic of Kenya. The letter and spirit of our Constitution and the embodiment within our National Anthem is important to be upheld as it restores public confidence. Standing Order No.98 of this House gives the Speaker responsibility to preserve order and decorum in protecting the integrity of this House, which he has failed in doing as I enumerate shortly. With regard to parliamentary language, the communications by the Speaker, on numerous occasions, in my humble opinion, have been unparliamentary. This is because, if you were to repeat the same words in this House as a Member you would suffer wrath as stipulated in our Standing Order Nos.108 to 112. In various occasions, Members have responded to this by walking out of the Chamber in a sign of protest. This disrespectful utterances or general reflections of Parliament as a whole, individually, should never be permitted, especially remarks directed to specific groups, or generally. This is because they offend Article 35 of the Constitution which gives us the freedom of speech. It is the sacred privilege within this House for as long as it is within the rule of law. The Speaker, as I said earlier, is a Member of this House and should be held to the highest accord as an example of our House. It is said that the very essence of leadership is the ability to instill in people a hope of success and a belief in themselves and empower people to achieve their goals. In our case, we are supposed to represent, legislate and oversight the Executive on behalf of the Kenyan people. The proceedings of the House are based on a long standing tradition of respect for the integrity of Members. Abusive and insultive languages cannot and will not be tolerated. What you wonder is when that questionable language comes from hon. Speaker himself. Convention tells us in all legislative assemblies around the world that you cannot challenge the communication from the chairperson. It is not just said in jest, but the tone, 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."
}