Africa -China Review Africa -China Cooperation and Transformation
Published:December 30,2021
By Irene Mwangi
MPs were Wednesday set to take a vote on the Political Parties Amendment Bill of 2021, a key factor in the 2022 presidential election that is already shaping up as a two-horse race between Deputy President William Ruto and Opposition chief Raila Odinga.
While Ruto has made it clear MPs should shoot the amendments down, terming them “fraudulent laws”, Odinga is keen to have them passed after a concession with his handshake partner President Uhuru Kenyatta who favours him as a successor when he leaves office next year.
Amani National Congres (ANC) party leader MusaliaMudavadi has also rallied his troops in Parliament to support the amendments which he sees as a rubber stamp to his One Kenya Alliance (OKA) which is yet to name a joint presidential candidate.
MPs were recalled by Speaker Justin Muturi to vote on the controversial amendments largely opposed by Rutoand MPs loyal to him who see it as a boost to Odingawho intends to vie for the presidency on an Azimio La Umoja ticket.
Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement party (ODM) has partnered with several parties to form the initiative and the bill, fronted by Majority Leader Amos Kimunya, is largely seen as a rubber stamp to his presidential bid since it seeks to allow parties or coalitions to front a presidential candidate.
MPs allied to Ruto stormed out of a meeting by the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC) on Tuesday, vowing to present their proposed amendments to the House on Wednesday.
The committee led by Kangema MP Muturi Kigano is on Wednesday morning expected to present a report in the House which will give consolidated amendments as well as recommend whether the amendments of those who stormed out should be struck out in totality for failing to attend the harmonization sitting.
“For those MPs who walked out, we take it as having dropped their amendments. Depending on our recommendations they are entitled to present their amendments before the house and the speaker will be able to see that they had an opportunity and they abandoned it,” Kigano said.
Kimunya who is the sponsor of the Bill termed the walkout as a ploy to derail the process of the amendments to the Bill.
“They are members who came here to create chaos and I have sat through the committee and I am of the conclusion that most of members who came were not in good faith, let’s put Kenya first,” said Kimunya.
The Tuesday drama unfolded after the MPs raised concerns over the invitation of political parties’ representatives to the meeting.
Those who walked out include Aden Duale (GarissaTownship), Kimani Ichungwa (Kikuyu), DidmusBarasa (Kimilili), Owen Baya (Kilifi North), Alice Wahome (Kandara) who were all expected to present their views.
“We will present our amendments before the house, we will not sanitize the committee process. The standing orders were clear, we were harmonizing our amendments not engaging in public participation,” said Duale.
A section of members of the JLAC committee holds that the MPs who walked out have lost their tenure to present amendments to the Political Parties Act.
Ruaraka MP T.J Kajwang argued that the Speaker of the National Assembly had directed that the amendments should be harmonized by the committee.
“The approval of the amendments of members who walked out was approved by the speaker subject to harmonization by the committee. When we give a report that a member came and left, the speaker may decide to drop the amendment and they will be nowhere in the order paper,” said Kajwang.
Homabay Town MP Peter Kaluma insisted that the standing order 131 which was invoked to allow the harmonization of amendments presented by more than a dozen MPs to the Political Parties Act was meant to expedite the process.
“When a member fails to avail himself for amendments before the committee, that member cannot be given an opportunity before the house that is the practice. These members cannot be heard before the house and we will conclusively tell the speaker,” stated Kaluma.
Leaders opposed to the Bill argue that there was no sufficient public participation undertaken as required by the Constitution.
“The invitation was part of wider scheme to sanitize the public participation that didn’t happen. Only three institutions were invited in the public participation. Even the political parties in the country and other relevant stakeholders were not invited,” said Duale.
The Chair of the JLAC committee however argues that the presence of stakeholders was nothing out of the order of business in committee sitting as guided by the law.
“The argument they have is not driven by national interest. We invited the major stakeholders, and the Speaker was right to invite them for the meeting. Infactit was publicized, and the deliberations of committees are always open to the members of the public,” argued Kigano.
Allafrica.com
