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{
    "id": 960314,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/960314/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 125,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Murkomen",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Majority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 440,
        "legal_name": "Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen",
        "slug": "kipchumba-murkomen"
    },
    "content": "I am a proud supporter and believer in the Constitution of Kenya 2010. I had the privilege to be there when it was being initially drafted. When Prof. Yash Pal Gai was the Chairperson of the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission, I worked as a Programme Officer under the Commission at that time and travelled to places in Kenya, including somewhere in Mwakinyungu and Mwatate in Taita-Taveta and many parts of the then Coast Province to listen to the views of Kenyans which were valid. One of the reasons why Kenyans went for the current Constitution is they wanted a working Bill of Rights. It is important to have a system that protects rights of the people of Kenya; a system that recognizes that rights are not donated by any individual, but given by God and protected by the State. It was also important under our new Constitution to deal with imperial Presidency. We wanted to ensure that you have a system of governance that works; and ensure that the power to determine what a constituency is and what is a ward is not going to be donated to one individual who wakes up one morning like it used to be in the KANU days and say we want to divide this constituency so that we can donate to a friend. That is exactly what happened in many parts of this country; that there was gerrymandering of constituency boundaries. A story is given of Mathioya where a particular constituency was created by President Moi to help his Secretary General, so that he could be elected. Unfortunately, after the creation of that particular constituency, somebody else won it. We then created a system of governance which ensures that boundaries of wards and constituencies are going to be delimited in an organized manner using independent institutions. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is provided for in Article 88 whose responsibility includes delimitation of boundaries of wards and constituencies. In Article 89, there is an elaborate mechanism within which these boundaries are delimited and it makes it mandatory that we are going to have 290 constituencies. That is cast in stone in so far as this Constitution is concerned. The Constitution also provides that the boundaries of these constituencies can be reviewed in intervals of between 8 and 12 years. A review of constituencies must be done 12 months before elections. Even where review is done, if it is done within the 12 months before elections. However, that review will not be applicable to the subsequent elections. Which means that if a review of boundaries is to happen within 8 or 12 years, that review must have enough time for citizens to familiarize themselves with their constituencies in preparation for the election of their leaders. A review of the boundaries has so many issues that have been provided for there. However, there is one missing link when it comes to the question of boundaries. What is missing is the participation of the elected leaders and the representatives of the people. Delimitation of wards and constituencies is such an emotive issue and a sensitive matter. It involves moving a constituency from, say, Kakamega County to Elgeyo-Marakwet County or from Siaya County to Lamu County depending on the question of population, movement of persons from one part of the country to the other and also on birthrate. You may find that Turkana County has more population or has stagnated for reasons such as underdevelopment, drought, violence or people might move from one county to another. 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."
}