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{
    "id": 966744,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/966744/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 243,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cheruiyot",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13165,
        "legal_name": "Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot",
        "slug": "aaron-cheruiyot"
    },
    "content": "leave it to the media to inform the public, we can be assured of having a very misinformed society. I recognize the issues that Sen. Olekina has addressed himself to. He has said that there are things that need to be answered when a governor is absent and you have provided a good way forward. You have explained how the person, who is supposed to take over when one is absent, should do it. We have two issues here. The first one is the absence and the second one is how to secure the absence of a governor if they are suspicions of crimes that he has committed. You have stated that there is a mechanism on how to do it. In the impeachment case of the Governor for Embu, Governor Wambora, the Supreme Court held that an impeachment process is sequential and that one thing has to lead to the other before one gets to the point of impeachment. In your ruling, you felt that there was a violation of the sequence and you are of the view that there ought to be a sequence. That does not mean that the two governors who have been asked to step aside are guilty or not guilty. However, you are saying that there is a procedure to be followed that will help in determination of how to get them out of office. As Kenyans, we must not forget our history. We know that people were tried for all manner of reasons in the period between 1963 to 2010 and some of those people are Members of this House. Most of them were tried for political persuasion. If one does not like the Deputy Speaker, they can initiate any kind of proceedings against him. The current political situation in this country has taught us that men are susceptible; that between men and an institution, trust the institution more. That is the essence of what our Constitution has done. It has built and given powers to specific institutions. Parliament is one such example. We sort of enjoy our independence with so much variation. Mr. Deputy Speaker Sir, reading Article One of our Constitution, the first institution where citizens donated their sovereignty is Parliament, even before the Judiciary. It is because of instances like today, where one can give direction and say that we think this is the proper route that the country needs to focus on in addressing some of these issues. Of course we understand the concerns and the mood of the country. Somebody cheekily read the mood of the country, saying that citizens are tired. We come here and debate the Division of Revenue Bill and the County Allocation of Revenue Bill, but you find that things are different when you move to the ground. Out of that hype, somebody said that we need to set an example. However, we must be careful not to set a wrong example; it must be the right one. We must be thorough and systemic in how we achieve that exercise. Mr. Deputy Speaker Sir, I believe that between sending a signal and actually giving a signal, you need to go for the latter. Give the actual signal. Let the process begin at a county assembly and let it come to Senate so that we can confirm that governor “X” has, indeed, pilfered public finances. Let it be confirmed. It if moves to court, as is envisioned in our Constitution, let the court also look at the evidence. If we can go through such a process and complete it to the end, we would have set a good example. In essence, that is what you were advising the House to do. Today you were in your 1:59 mood; if I may put it that way. 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."
}