Kenya's Parliament building. Photo/FILE
By ALPHONCE SHIUNDU ashiundu@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted Sunday, March 11 2012 at 22:30
Posted Sunday, March 11 2012 at 22:30
IN SUMMARY
- Committee set to debate Head of State’s changes to the County Bill before the break
The House Business Committee has dropped its bid to send MPs home for a break until April 10.
The powerful team, which sets Parliament’s agenda, has instead rescheduled parliamentary business to have MPs dispense with the memorandum of the President on the County Governments Bill, 2012. (READ: Divided House set to debate Kibaki memo)
The change of heart comes against the backdrop of heightened political heat in the House over the veracity of a controversial document that alleges that the International Criminal Court is investigating President Mwai Kibaki over the 2007/08 post poll chaos. (READ: UK denies Kibaki ICC plot)
The debate on County Governments Bill is also expected to generate much heat given that MPs have threatened to throw out the President’s assertion that the Bill, as approved by the House, was unconstitutional.
The debate on the Bill comes days after the Prime Minister’s adviser on Legal Affairs, Mr Paul Mwangi, criticised the President’s team for not advising the Head of State well.
The PM’s adviser reasoned that there was no big deal in the way MPs had acted on the law, and that President Kibaki’s advisers had simply fomented an unnecessary constitutional crisis. (READ: Kibaki’s memo stirs up MPs)
“I cannot think of a better and even safer way of subjecting national security to civilian authority than by involving the duly-elected civilian executive at the county,” said Mr Mwangi, regarding the President’s push to bar the governor from chairing the county security committee.
The second clause that displeased the President’s legal advisers was clause 54 that provides that district commissioners, district officers, chiefs and sub-chiefs act as administrators of the county government.
Coming at a time when the President and the Prime Minister have differed on several issues, the debate on the memo will test the stability of the Coalition Government. (READ: House and Executive clash over county law)
To veto the President’s stand, MPs will need to raise a 65 per cent majority –145 MPs to approve the Bill without changes and force the President to append his signature.
The Bill was drafted by the office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government Musalia Mudavadi.
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