{"id":584331,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/584331/?format=json","text_counter":339,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"would like to ask today is: Is it futile to petition Parliament? Is it an exercise in futility for m ama mboga to present a petition to the county assembly? If you look at the procedure for processing petitions even in this House, once you have crafted a petition in the manner that is prescribed in the Bill that we are discussing today, the person who brings that petition to this House speaks for only five minutes. There shall be no debate on that petition unless the Speaker feels that people should comment on it, in which case, for example, our Standing Orders say that there shall be a maximum of 30 minutes for discussions on the petition. When we brought a Petition to this House on the plight of former councilors, you saw that the Gallery was full of former councilors who expected an electrifying contribution and performance from every Senator in this House. However, the rules did not allow Senators to make any quality or substantive contribution to that Petition. This is because when it is tabled here, the Mover can only speak for five minutes and other Senators can only contribute for 30 minutes. Once that petition comes to this House, it is referred to the relevant committee which is required to do its work and bring back its report to the House within 60 days. I have been in a situation where a petition was referred to a Committee where I sit, only for us to realise that that petition was committed to the wrong Committee. We had to dismiss the petition because it had landed in the wrong Committee. We told the petitioner: “Sorry, you are in the right House but in the wrong room.” That meant that that was the end of that petition and we had a very disappointed petitioner who felt that the Senate did not really care about him. Once the Committee brings a report to this House within 60 days, that report shall be tabled in the House, and no debate shall be allowed unless, at the discretion of the Speaker, he feels that it is such an important matter that it should be discussed. In that case, a debate shall only be allowed for 20 minutes. This is the fate that will befall the petition by the former councilors – a very important matter. When the relevant Committee brings that Petition here, we shall only discuss it for 20 minutes. As the last born of this House, in 20 minutes unfortunately, I will not get an opportunity to speak on the report of that Committee. That is why I keep asking: Is it futile for citizens to petition this House? Once that report comes to this House, the Clerk is required to write a report to the petitioners within 14 days and that is the end of the story. How do we then ensure that, first of all, the Committee that the petition is referred to does a good job? How do we deal with the “so what” question that Sen. G.G. Kariuki had attempted to raise? After the Committee has done its report, what happens next? Is there anything binding on the Senate or county assembly which we are discussing in this particular case, to take action on the recommendations that have been brought forward by that Committee? We need to ask ourselves whether petitions are serving the intended interest or purpose. I agree that petitions will open a window for citizens to give directions and probe Parliament and county assemblies, but it is weak. There is nothing that can replace certain other avenues of ensuring that the public participates. One, we must continue to strengthen public participation and at the right time, we should start considering making it mandatory that every elected representative must have a formal documented and 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."}