Eng. Nicholas Gumbo

All parliamentary appearances

Entries 451 to 460 of 3504.

• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: I am on a point of order, Hon. Speaker. We want all matters touching on the IEBC to be put on abeyance until we get the Report of the bipartisan Committee being chaired by Sen. Kiraitu Murungi and Sen. James Orengo. Hon. Speaker, I wish to request your indulgence that we postpone debate on this matter under Standing Order No.96, so that we can have comprehensive consultation on this Bill. I also intend to speak to this Bill. We have already had the Special Audit Report from PAC on IEBC. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for ... view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: We have made recommendations that touch on some of the proposals of this Bill. That has been tabled here. There would be nothing to stop me from referring to those recommendations because they are now out there in public domain. I request your indulgence. view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I rise to oppose this Bill in its current form. I have reasons for opposing this Bill in its current form. In the first place, I believe this idea of being obsessed with trying to address the present problems instead of looking into long-term issues which affect our country, is what keeps bringing us to where we are. There is hardly any election we have had in this country where the previous electoral commission has conducted succeeding elections. All this is tied to this principle which I call “short-termism.” We are trying to deal ... view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: The Bill before this House is too small to comprehensively address the election management problems in Kenya. Kenya is not the only country which holds elections. In fact, nearly 10 countries in Africa hold elections every year. More than 10 countries hold elections every year in the world. We have a chance to look at the best practices, but we refuse to do so. Any attempt to amend the IEBC Act is an opportunity for us to look around and see how others are doing it. view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: How come India with an electoral register of more than 800 million voters manages that big voter register with only three commissioners? This is a question which should be before this House. The Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs should help us to address it. Among those three commissioners, only one is full time. How come the cost per voter in this 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. view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: country is nearly Kshs3,000, while the cost per voter is hardly Kshs70 in a Commonwealth country like India? It costs nearly $30 to cast a vote in Kenya. In India, it costs $0.7. Why is there a disparity? These are the questions we should be asking. One might say that our methods of voting are different, but I do not agree with that. We have comparatives. Ghana conducts electronic voting. Why is it that our cost per voter is higher compared to that of Ghana? These are the questions we should be addressing. view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: The idea to make the commissioners part time looks progressive, but it is not good enough. I do not understand why we need five commissioners. We need much less. It is not only reducing the number of the commissioners which is important. We also need to describe what they are supposed to do. The commissioners should deal with policy issues and oversight from time to time. These are part time duties as opposed to clear cases where the commissioners get involved in day to day operations of election management in this country. All these things need to be looked at. ... view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: I want to believe that this system of looking for electoral managers of our country must be as inclusive as possible. Everyone cannot come to the table to nominate the managers of elections in Kenya. The selection panel will decide the five men and women or three men and women who will manage elections on behalf of the people of Kenya. I do not agree that we have five commissioners because they are too many. Unless we convey to the people of Kenya that there is sufficient credibility in that process, we will be trapped into the same vicious circle ... view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: daily exercise? Others told us that they coordinate the regions. Is that a daily exercise? I agree with reducing the number of commissioners. view
• 21 Jul 2016 in National Assembly: As I conclude, our country faces many problems. I had said it before. Today, income inequality, corruption, youth unemployment and high cost of living are realities but nothing threatens the cohesion and the fabric of our nationhood more than a bungled election. It starts from the process of appointing election managers. view