Friday, August 19, 2011

Publish bills: Kibaki orders to avoid blame for delay



By Martin Mutua  and Alex Ndegwa

President Kibaki has directed that the Government publish today (Friday) all Bills the Cabinet has approved.
The directive was made even as it emerged the Cabinet meeting President Kibaki chaired Thursday evening, resolved that it would not be possible to enforce the one-third gender rule in the 2012 parliamentary elections.
Sources told The Standard the President did not want the August 27 deadline to expire and he be blamed for violating the Constitution, whose first anniversary is eight days away.
During the Cabinet meeting he chaired at State House, Nairobi, which Prime Minister Raila Odinga also attended, the Cabinet approved the crucial Elections Bill 2011, with some amendments.
The Cabinet will hold a historic meeting tomorrow  — the third sitting this week — to scrutinise four crucial Bills ahead of the August 27 deadline.
The Cabinet amendments on Bill seen by The Standard include a sub- clause 14 (20), which bars a political party from changing a candidate whose nomination the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has received.
The Cabinet, however, gave the political parties a window to change the nomination of their candidates, if the nominee, either dies, resigns or is incapacitated, among other reasons, before the presentation of nomination papers to the commission.
Apart from a possible failure to enact Bills that have a one-year timeline as set out in the Sixth Schedule, several constitutional offices, which are supposed to have been filled by next week, could prove hard.
In the event the constitutional timeliness are not met, any person can petition the Chief Justice to advise the President, to dissolve Parliament for the violation.
The term of Attorney General Amos Wako ends next week, but the President Kibaki and the Prime Minister are yet to name Wako’s successor.
The two principals, sources say, have agreed on the next AG, but they have kept the public guessing.
Only the Attorney General is mandated by the Constitution to forward all Bills to the Government Printer for publication.
A vacuum at the Public Law Office could undermine the process.

One-year deadline
Whereas the choice is not bound to cause ripples, since it is between the two principals, the appointment of the Inspector-General of Police and two deputies, due next Friday, could prove impossible.
The Bill outlining how the appointment of the Inspector-General of Police should be done was published this week, but with an August 12, 2011 date.
If parliamentary procedures are followed, the Bill is supposed to take 10 days to mature before it comes to the House for first reading, which will be on Tuesday next week, three days before the expiry of the one-year deadline.
And yesterday the Government rushed to Parliament with the three police Bills, seeking to shorten the publication period from the mandatory 14 days, to six, to allow them to be debated and commence the process of appointing the Inspector-General of Police.
However, according to the Bill the position of the Inspector-General is supposed to be advertised in at least two daily newspapers with national circulation, declaring the vacancy within 14 days from the commencement of the Act once the National Assembly enacts the legislation.
While other police reforms have a timeline of two years after promulgation of the Constitution, the appointment of the Inspector-General was supposed to have been filled within a year of the promulgation.
Other appointments, which have also not been made, include the Controller of Budget and the Auditor General. These are supposed to be approved by Parliament after the two principals pick the office bearers.
And 14 Bills, which are supposed to have been passed by August 27, have so far not reached the House for debate.
At the same time, there is also a standoff between the Treasury and the Ministry of Local Government over a Bill, which is supposed to guide funding of county governments.
The Public Financial Management Bill, which is also supposed to have been enacted, by next week, is the subject of a clash between Deputy Prime Ministers Uhuru Kenyatta and Musalia Mudavadi on funding of counties.
The two ministries have prepared two different proposed Bills and each side has maintained its positions.
The Commission on Implementation of Constitution has also failed to resolve the dispute.
The matter has since been referred to the two principals for arbitration.
A meeting called by the PM on Wednesday, bringing together the two deputy premiers failed.
And more than a month after the Cabinet approved the Commission for Revenue Allocation Bill from the Treasury, the Government Printer is yet to publish it.

Police reforms
Other Bills that have also not surfaced in Parliament include, Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Bill, Kenya Citizens and Foreign Nationals Management Service Bill, Environment and Land Court Bill, and Power of Mercy Bill.
Also not in the House are the Elections Bill, Independent Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission Bill, Public Financial Management Bill, the Employment and Labour Relations Court Bill 2011, and Urban Areas and Cities Bill. Meanwhile, Parliament voted to shorten the process of passing three crucial Bills on police reforms to beat August 27.
And Deputy Leader of Government Business, Amos Kimunya would next week be asked to extend sitting hours to clear pending Bills to avoid violating the Constitution.
Despite opposition by some backbenchers, the House yesterday endorsed a Government Motion to shorten the publication period of Bills on police reforms to hasten debate.
The publication period of the National Police Service Bill, National Police Service Commission Bill, and Independent Policing Oversight Authority Bill was reduced from 14, to six days.
Standing Order 107 permits the action to facilitate speedy enactment of urgent Bills.  A Bill to establish the National Gender and Equality Commission was passed on Wednesday.  Another to restructure Kenya National Human Rights Commission was approved last evening.
On Thursday, the Motion to shorten publication period was resisted by MPs who charged the action was designed to shield the Bills from scrutiny. Isaac Ruto (Chepalungu), Ekwe Ethuro (Turkana Central), Abdi Nuh (Bura), John Pesa (Migori) and John Mbadi (Gwassi) opposed the Motion, alleging the rush could compromise the quality of laws.

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