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{
    "id": 895,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/895/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 400,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Okemo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 198,
        "legal_name": "Chrysanthus Barnabas Okemo",
        "slug": "chrysanthus-okemo"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, on 18th November, 2011, a letter was written to the Clerk of the National Assembly by the Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet indicating that His Excellency the President, in consultation with the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister, had nominated the persons that who been named in the Motion and, therefore, they were to be presented to Parliament for vetting. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, on 22nd November, 2011, the hon. Speaker in a Communication to the House referred the names of 13 nominees together with their curriculum vitae to the Departmental Committee on Finance, Planning and Trade for vetting and directed the Committee to submit its report. We went through the vetting process. The Constitution provides for 14 nominees. Out of the 14 nominees, only 12 appeared before the Committee. The nominee from the Police Service Commission was not available because the Commission has not been formed yet. So, we will wait for that and when it is done then we will receive that nominee for vetting at a later date. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the nominee for the Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU) had certain issues because there are about four trade unions which represent the Public Service. There is Organization of Civil Servants Union, Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), an organization that represents non-teaching staff and another one that represents the academic staff of the universities. These are unions which represent employees in the Public Service. They wrote raising objections because they felt that they are not part of COTU because COTU is defined as an umbrella trade union. Their argument was that COTU only represents unions in the private sector and they are not affiliated to COTU. They have made attempts to be registered under a different umbrella that represents the public servants and that application for registration has not been accepted by the Registrar of Trade Unions. Therefore, they felt that they had not been included and they had, therefore, not participated. They went to court and received a judicial review. They had applied for the process to be stopped until their review had been heard and determined. So, when we received this communication we felt that for purposes of inclusiveness and participation by all relevant parties, we would defer this particular nominee until the matter has been resolved. That would involve inviting representatives of these four or five unions that represent employees in the Public Service. That process has not been completed. That is why the nominee that was given by COTU in the name of Isaiah Kubai was not presented among the 14 nominees that are supposed to be there for the Salaries and Remuneration Commission. Since the Salaries and Remuneration Commission needs to commence work immediately, we felt that even if we have 12 nominees, if Parliament approves them and they are subsequently appointed then at least the Salaries and Remuneration Commission can start its work immediately as we sort out the issue of the COTU nominee and also await the appointment or vetting of the nominee by the Police Service Commission. Otherwise, we went through the normal process of vetting. We went through all these names that I have mentioned and we found that they were suitable; they met the criteria as specified in the Constitution. We, therefore, passed them and found them fit to serve in the Salaries and Remuneration Commission. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to stop there. I would like to ask Prof. Kaloki to second the Motion."
}