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{
    "id": 922175,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/922175/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 187,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Orengo",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Minority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 129,
        "legal_name": "Aggrey James Orengo",
        "slug": "james-orengo"
    },
    "content": "This is now the Bill. Sen. Wetangula would rather talk about “this is the case,” which we had in court today in the morning but; “this is the Bill”. This Bill defines whether or not we want devolution. I will say just one thing, because the able distinguished Senate Majority Leader has said a lot of things, and I would like my other colleagues to also say something about this matter. Madam Temporary Speaker, all over the world, people get tired with politicians. When they get tired, you get a leadership emerging in some of the countries that you cannot imagine. It is possible that if we do not do things right in Kenya, the leadership that is going to emerge is not the leadership that the country deserves. If we leave the Constitution to be abused and violated, we can become another such country. There are countries in the world – and I do not want to necessarily talk about the leaders in those countries – take Philippines, for example. There is a leadership that emerged there because the people were tired of politicians not doing the right thing. Madam Temporary Speaker, I can tell you without fear of contradiction that if this Senate is not ready to defend the Constitution and do things in accordance to the law, the leadership that will emerge in Kenya will not be the people you think. The country will be tired if we cannot defend the Constitution. There can be another unknown character with very bad manners who can emerge as the President of the Republic of Kenya. What we did today went beyond The Division of Revenue Bill and the powers of the Senate under the Constitution. What we were doing is protecting the integrity of this country and the Constitution of Kenya, so that the country gets the leadership it deserves. I know that as a Senate, we will not allow any other institution to erode our powers. We will not touch the powers of the Executive or the Judiciary, but we will not allow the Executive to erode the powers of the Senate or to take the Senate for granted in any shape or form. The fact that somebody imagined that you can have an Appropriations Act without a Division of Revenue Act was an assault on the Senate. It is not only as assault on the Senate, but an assault on devolution. Devolution is an important pillar under the current Constitution. Article 6, which my learned friend, Sen. Murkomen, quoted right together with Article 10, demonstrates the centrality of devolution in our system of government. As we reduce the publication period of this Bill today, we were doing things they way they should be done. I want to ask the Attorney-General--- I am very proud of the Attorney-General in the United Kingdom. When the Government of Tony Blair decided to go to war in Iraq, the Attorney General told Tony Blair that going to war in Iraq without seeking the concurrence of other countries within the United Nations system would be a sin and a gross violation of international law. Tony Blair has regretted going to war without following the advice of the Attorney General. The Attorney General is the principal legal advisor of the President and the Republic of Kenya and he must wake up to the job. He can tell us or the Executive off if we are wrong. That is why he also sits in the Judicial Service Commission. Under the old system, he used to sit in the National Assembly as a Member. I am not pointing an accusing finger but we are going through very difficult times and we need an Attorney General who can stand at any time and place when things are going wrong with the law. That is why I am proud of the Director of Budget, in the Office of the President, for standing up and saying that, ‘what you are doing cannot happen’. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}