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{
    "id": 733038,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/733038/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 150,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Ichung’wah",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1835,
        "legal_name": "Anthony Kimani Ichung'Wah",
        "slug": "anthony-kimani-ichungwah"
    },
    "content": "Sorry, Auditor-General. You know the acronym for both offices is AG. I am talking about the Office of the Auditor-General. Thank you for that correction. I was saying you should be able to guide this House whether that conservatory order then also gags the entire Assembly; whether we cannot consider that Petition as a House, or even before another Committee, say, the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs chaired by Hon. Chepkong’a. The other question is on our own Standing Orders. The Constitution, again, gives this House powers to draft its own rules and procedures on how to conduct business. Within the same Standing Orders, we have given timeliness on when and how we will consider such petitions by Members of the public. Therefore, we would want to know from your ruling whether we trash and put aside our own Standing Orders, or whether the courts in this country can direct this House on how to conduct its business either as Committees, or even the entire Assembly. That is key in what Hon. Olago Aluoch, spoke about concerning the supremacy of this House and more so concerning the issue of separation of powers. This is because the Constitution gives the three arms of Government independence; there is supposed to be non-interference by one arm of Government on the workings of the other arm of Government. That is why this House and Senate are mandated to consider petitions to impeach the President and the Executive cannot, in any way, interfere with that procedure until the House concludes the process. I had occasion, later this morning, to look at the conservatory orders that were issued. It is interesting! I realized that those orders were given on a plaint that was not asked by the petitioner in that case. Therefore, it begs the question whether we have a Judiciary that wants to come and conduct business in this House. Maybe, Hon. Speaker, you should consider vacating your seat at some point and allow Justice Odunga, Justice Chacha Mwita and others who want to control other arms of Government from the corridors of justice to come and sit where you sit and conduct the business of this House. Perhaps, they should come and also conduct those Committee sessions. I want to say that you and this House must jealously guard the powers that have been conferred to this House by nothing else but this Constitution. This is because we are representatives of the people in this House and we must represent our people by even overseeing those independent offices. I was particularly keen because I raised this matter last year on the question of the appointment of M/s. Baker Tilly Merali auditing firm by the Office of the Auditor-General. We have an office. Again, I do not want to go into the merits and demerits of that Petition because I am not even averse with all the issues, but that is a matter that was before this House. You remember Hon. Keynan, on behalf of the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC), withdrawing the Motion on the appointment of an auditor to audit the Auditor-General’s Office. There are questions that need to be answered. There are other witnesses we were keen to hear in relation to that Petition but like Hon. Olago has said, I want to say that besides whether there is merit or not in the Petition before the Committee, the Judiciary cannot gag this House from considering that Petition. We should conclude the process because even the procedure in the Constitution on the removal of an independent officer does not end with the Report that will be done by the Departmental Committee on Finance, Planning and Trade. It does not even end with the adoption of that 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."
}