Photo/FILE President Mwai Kibaki arrives in Parliament for its special opening on March 22,2011. MPs, who have been away for a month, return to the House to execute their plot to punish the Executive for failing to keep a promise to shield their perks from the taxman.
By ALPHONCE SHIUNDU ashiundu@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted Sunday, July 17 2011 at 22:30
Posted Sunday, July 17 2011 at 22:30
Approval of this year’s Budget, passage of 11 constitutional Bills and a fight-back plan to keep the taxman at bay top Parliament’s agenda when it resumes sittings on Tuesday.
And as the clock ticks towards the 2012 polls, MPs are also expected to vet nominees for the Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission(IEBC).
The much-awaited law to guide parliamentary approval of nominees to public jobs is also due for debate.
The Bill, sponsored by Garsen MP Danson Mungatana, is expected to be enacted quickly to expedite the appointment of the Attorney General, Controller of Budget and Auditor General.
Punish the Executive
The MPs also have to contend with the leadership wrangle in the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee.
It is understood that deputy Speaker Farah Maalim will convene the powerful Liaison Committee to put the matter to rest this week.
The MPs, who have been away for a month, return to the House to execute their plot to punish the Executive for failing to keep a promise to shield their perks from the taxman.
The Kenya Revenue Authority has indicated that MPs should expect to part with one third of their total income at the end of this month as well as settle arrears accumulated since August 27, 2010, when the new Constitution was promulgated.
The PSC will meet the President, Prime Minister and the Treasury on the tax issue.
It is not clear how the Speaker and PSC plan to handle these talks, given that the much-touted letter shielding MPs’ perks from the axe was a product of similar talks that have been dismissed as a “gentleman’s agreement” to dupe them into supporting the Constitution in the August 4, 2010, referendum.
Speaker Kenneth Marende will also be called on to make a ruling on the matter. “We have to satisfy the interests of the public, the Executive and legislature,” he said last week.
Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta will be the busiest Cabinet minister on Tuesday afternoon as he introduces three Bills, with the Finance Bill, 2011 topping the list.
The other two are the Capital Markets (Amendment) Bill and the Central Depositories (Amendment) Bill.
With just five weeks to the August 26 deadline for the passage of key Bills, Parliament will be racing against the clock.
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