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{
    "id": 903915,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/903915/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 626,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Orengo",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Minority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 129,
        "legal_name": "Aggrey James Orengo",
        "slug": "james-orengo"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Speaker, one of these days, they may find that there may be another despot who may think that he wants to use the Senate, as opposed to the National Assembly. They would then cry for this legislation that we are now putting in place. There are countries like the Philippines where, although there is a House of Representatives, the Senate is quite strong. In fact, there are only 24 Senators in a country of more than 100 million people. They have more than 300 Members of Parliament with a bigger population, but the Senate is a very powerful institution. In fact, if you want to climb to the presidency, being a regional governor or a mayor is not as important as being a Senator. Therefore, in future, somebody may reorganise the system we have in place now and decide that the Senate will be the House that would be able to pass any Bill, like the National Assembly is doing at the moment. I hope that, that time does not come. However, the arrangement that we have, under this new Constitution is to ensure that in legislation, the two Houses are involved in accordance with the decision of the Supreme Court of Kenya. Madam Temporary Speaker, in our system, it is not just the National Assembly; the aspect of public participation was not there before. In the chapter dealing with Parliament, you find that there are provisions about public participation. We cannot make any laws without public participation. In the Chapter that deals with Parliament, there are provisions about public participation. We cannot make any laws without public participation. I cannot see any justification why the National Assembly will be comfortable with public participation and not with the role that the Senate is designed to play in this constitutional arrangement. I know there are many of my colleagues who would like to contribute on this matter. I, therefore, beg to support and commend the Bill to the House."
}