{"count":1608389,"next":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=157424","previous":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=157422","results":[{"id":1592422,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592422/?format=json","text_counter":779,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Homa Bay Town, ODM","speaker_title":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker":null,"content":"parties if we reject the commission? I am in the party which singularly standing, could be the biggest we have around. We are a big beneficiary of this Fund, and we are a party with a leadership. One of the best leaders Africa has ever produced; the right Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga, Prime Minister. You want to tell me that the entitlement of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party from the Political Parties Fund cannot be managed by an organisation headed by the former Prime Minister, Raila Amolo Odinga? That we take that money which should be used to organise our party, to a commission of seven people? Then how will the political parties duly access it if there is gerrymandering and jokes around the party? I think there is no other provision that has been abusive of the level of maturity of our political party than this one. So, Hon. Temporary Speaker, when you look at all these things together, this is a Bill that I would be urging Members ― and I am happy that the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal is here ― to reject so that we have the Office of the Registrar doing the work it has been doing."},{"id":1592423,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592423/?format=json","text_counter":780,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Farah Maalim","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":" Give him an additional three or four minutes."},{"id":1592424,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592424/?format=json","text_counter":781,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Homabay Town, ODM","speaker_title":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker":null,"content":" Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. For example, when we are done with elections, the Office of the Registrar should communicate to the House which party is majority or minority by dint of membership. You can imagine how fractious our elections are, at times, if you were to commit such a decision to a team of more than one person going strictly by records. It is a problem."},{"id":1592425,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592425/?format=json","text_counter":782,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Farah Maalim","speaker_title":"Hon. Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":" There could be disagreements just like our electoral commission..."},{"id":1592426,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592426/?format=json","text_counter":783,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Homa Bay Town","speaker_title":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker":null,"content":" There could be disagreements which will keep it, and when those disagreements are going on, some may even end up in the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal. The House will be hung not knowing which is the majority side and which is minority. So, these things have far-reaching ramifications. The problem with the growth of our political parties, and their maturity, is the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal and the Court. I wish this Bill was looking at that, instead of disbanding the Office and creating a commission with all the expenditures we cannot deal with. Currently, a party like Orange Democratic Party (ODM) will sit and say, Hon. Kaluma ideally, by conduct, should be deemed to have resigned from the party under the Elections Act provisions. The decisions parties have been making are in good faith even though, others are malicious. However, in each of these cases, they go to the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal while others even skip that Tribunal which we empowered when we first sat under this new Constitution in the Departmental Committee of Justice and Legal Affairs Committee. They go straight to the High Court and the courts, instead of sustaining party decisions duly made, like these many others floating around here, not those ones which are malicious and we can separate them... But to the extent that people are now saying that even if they misbehave and do whatever they want, the decision on that matter will be made beyond the elections. Look at even our ODM Party today. You have ODM Party members supporting somebody who is working with the World Bank there, and you cannot enforce. You have to take such provision to discipline them, to bring them back in line, to support the Broad-Based Government where all of us are. They will go to the High Court. You see Hon. Caroli laughing, and for very good reasons. So, if we are going to strengthen our parties, then the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal and our courts must know that we are in a multi-party democratic state, and the parties have organs and systems through which they decide fairly. If there is fair decision within the meaning of Articles 50 and 47, the decision of the party should be allowed to stand and any dispute taken by an individual affected should in any event be expeditiously determined. That way, we can contain parties which are going overboard in breaching the The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."},{"id":1592427,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592427/?format=json","text_counter":784,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Homa Bay Town","speaker_title":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker":null,"content":"members' rights as we also allow parties to govern and be institutions that are contemplated under the Constitution. I, thank you very much, and I oppose."},{"id":1592428,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592428/?format=json","text_counter":785,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Farah Maalim","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":" Hon. Murugara and Hon. Toroitich both want to contribute."},{"id":1592429,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592429/?format=json","text_counter":786,"type":"scene","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"(Hon. George Murugara spoke off the record)"},{"id":1592430,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592430/?format=json","text_counter":787,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Farah Maalim","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":"You seconded in the first place, so it is Hon. Toroitich."},{"id":1592431,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1592431/?format=json","text_counter":788,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Marakwet West, Independent","speaker_title":"Hon. Timothy Kipchumba","speaker":null,"content":" Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me an opportunity to speak to this very important Bill before this House, which is the Political Parties (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill (Senate Bill No. 26 of 2024). At the outset, I wish to associate myself partly, with the sentiments of Hon. Caroli Omondi in so far as matters with independent Members of Parliament are concerned. But looking at the spirit of this Bill, I am in support of having a commission for the reason that commissions established pursuant to Chapter 15 of the Constitution. Independent Offices have proved over time that they perform their functions without being arm-twisted by the Executive. Therefore, I support that the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties be scrapped and, in its place, we establish a Commission. This is to ensure that we do away with arm twisting by the Executive or certain individuals with vested interests in political parties. We must appreciate that this is a consequence of the NADCO Report. During the protests in the country, political leaders sat down and came up with the NADCO Report. This is one of its products. So, when Hon. Kaluma says that he does not support this Report, does he mean that he does not support NADCO Report, because this is one of its products? We are implementing a recommendation of the NADCO Report. Political parties are funded by taxpayers’ money. Therefore, the money should not only benefit political parties but also, independent candidates. I am an Independent Member of Parliament. Were it not for the provision under the Constitution that provides for election of Independent candidates, I would not be here today. I am a victim of injustice and electoral fraud during party nominations. Were it not for the avenue under the Constitution for Independent candidates, I would not be here. Twelve Members in this House are elected on Independent tickets. Were it not for that avenue, we would not be in this House. I have also looked at the membership of the Commission. I appreciate that Hon. Murugara is here. Clause 33(b) says that the Commission shall comprise five members nominated in accordance to sub-section (2) and appointed by the President, with the approval of Parliament. Clause 33(b)(3) further says that members of the Commission shall elect a Chairperson and a Vice-Chairperson. That goes against the spirit of Article 250 on nomination of commissioners and chairperson of commissions. Article 250 of the Constitution talks about a chairperson and members of a commission. But this Bill says that the commissioners shall appoint their own chairperson. We can compare it with other commissions like the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC). Under the IEBC Act, the Chairperson of the Commission is nominated differently from members. If you say that the chairperson of the commission shall be elected by the nominated members, then there is bound to be corruption and there is a likelihood of compromise. So, my proposal would be that we adopt the spirit of Article 250 of the Constitution which separates the nomination of the chairperson from that of members to a commission."}]}