Elective seats: MPs now call for scrapping of gender rule

The stiff resistance to affirmative action on elective seats by a significant number of male MPs has led them to advocate extreme measures in an attempt to resolve the gender impasse in the next elections.

Some of them are now pushing for the removal of the two-thirds gender rule from the Constitution, while ODM chief whip Jakoyo Midiwo wants the 47 county seats reserved for women scrapped.

In addition, the Gem MP wants the 80 new constituencies created under the 2010 Constitution revoked and constituencies kept at the present 210; the number of MPs would also be limited to a maximum of 292.

The group behind the two options says the proposals should be subjected to a referendum at the General Election.

A kamukunji held on Thursday failed to reach a consensus on the mechanism Parliament should use to effect Article 27 (8) and (81b) of the Constitution, which states that no more than two-thirds of members of any institution should be of one gender, leaving Parliament in a dilemma. (READ: MPs fail to agree on how to bridge the gender gap)

The article, which the MPs want deleted from the Constitution, aims at addressing the poor representation of women in key State organs, a state of affairs that is attributed mainly to cultural practice, violence in political campaigns and lack of resources.

Achieving the right proportion of either gender in Parliament and the new Senate is one of the main challenges of the next election, which is what the Constitution of Kenya Amendment Bill 2011, now before Parliament seeks to address.

To meet the requirement set out in Article 27, the Bill intends to amend Articles 97 and 98 on the composition of the National Assembly and Senate to provide for special seats that would see an increase in MPs and senators to a number that will only be determined after the elections.

Political parties will draw up “standby” lists of men and women which will be used to fill gender gaps if the election results do not result in the right gender balance. The list will be deposited with the electoral commission before election day.

The Constitution provides for 290 elected MPs, 47 women elected from counties, and 12 nominated members, making a total of 349.

To satisfy the gender rule, Kenyans must elect at least 117 women or men. If the 117 mark is not met, then the new arrangement captured in the amendment requires that political parties provide names of the disadvantaged gender from their list to comply with the Constitution.

Last week, representatives of two key parliamentary committees and State institutions critical to implementation of the Constitution resolved that the Cabinet proposals were the best mechanism to achieve affirmative action. However, the mainly male MPs rejected them, leaving Parliament in a dilemma.

MPs rejecting the party lists argue that direct nominations are likely to be abused by party leaders, who are mainly men, to pick undeserving individuals such as “girlfriends”, relatives and associates. They also argue that additional MPs will lead to a bloated Parliament that would be a liability to the taxpayer.

Others argue that such nominations would lower the dignity of Parliament through the selection of a huge number of sycophants. They claim that only elitist and urban women would be picked, including those who would pay for a slot.

Others argue that the number of MPs will be fluctuating, making it difficult to plan and budget parliamentary activities. There are also those who claim that more MPs may lead to lower pay packages.

Some, like Mr Midiwo, also argue that “easy seats” would be counter-productive by disefranchising women who wish to run for elective seats.

But on Saturday, Mr Abdikadir Mohamed, the chairman of Parliament’s Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee, challenged those “giving excuses” to reject special seats for women to explain to the country why they cite such obstacles only when it comes to affirmative action.

“If there was a tribe comprising 52 per cent of the population and with only seven per cent of seats in Parliament, how would you have reacted?

"It is an injustice borne out of history and culture, and where it has been corrected through legislative and policy intervention, Parliament has a constitutional duty to ensure that is done,” said the Mandera Central MP.

“If Kenyans do not want a bloated House or to carry an extra cost, let them elect the one-third women. If that happens, there will be no need to nominate a single woman,” said Mr Mohamed.

Sexist claims

He dismissed as sexist, myopic and abusive claims that women are nominated because they are friends of party leaders, adding that the current crop of nominated women MPs are among the sharpest and most brilliant in the House.

Mr Midiwo described the county seats for women as unnecessary and argued that creation of additional ones through party lists would result in a huge burden for the taxpayer.

He dismissed the current debate on the Cabinet proposals as “shallow” especially “during these hard times when people are striking for better pay”.

But on Saturday Mr Mohamed dismissed Mr Midiwo’s proposal as a “pipe dream” and a red herring meant to distract Parliament from addressing the key issue of gender parity.

He saw calls for new amendments by Mr Midiwo and those calling for removal of the gender rule as a tactic to delay elections.

During the Thursday closed- door meeting, allegations were levelled against individuals in government who are plotting to have elections pushed to August.

They cited the Executive’s reluctance to conclude crucial business given that the term of Parliament expires in just about 90 days.

“Anything touching on the scrapping of women’s county seats and revocation of the 80 new constituencies would require brand-new amendments, and there is no time for that.

"It will not happen unless it is being used as a tactic to delay elections, and if Mr Midiwo is interested in delaying elections, he should say so,” said Mr Mohamed.

“They want to say no and are looking for an excuse to delay the elections. It is a way of denying women their rights.”

He sought to allay fears that the nomination process would be abused, saying the Constitution makes it mandatory for the electoral commission to supervise the process.

“The list will be a product of a competitive and transparent process because it will be supervised by the IEBC.”

Yatta MP Charles Kilonzo, whose proposal to have 94 women elected from the counties to reduce the number of nominations was rejected, said MPs are determined to strike the gender rule from the Constitution.

“We have said no to the gender parity rule, and since they have rejected the proposal for more women’s seats in the counties, we shall remove it (the provision) and subject the amendment to a referendum in the next elections.”

Weighty amendments such as the deletion of the gender balance provision must be subjected to a referendum.Mr Kilonzo and his counterparts, as well as Mr Midiwo, want their amendments brought to the House, subjected to all procedures including a 90-day period for public debate, and voted on by Kenyans in the General Election.

“The country now has a perfect opportunity to address the 20 per cent content in the Constitution which we said was bad and needed to be addressed,” Mr Midiwo said.

Nominated MP Amina Abdalla, the chairperson of Parliament’s Committee on Delegated Legislation, dismissed the intended amendments as “empty threats”.

“It is not feasible to delete the ‘not more than two-thirds rule’. Article 27 (8) is in the Bill of Rights and requires a referendum. There is no time for that,” she said.

To enact such an amendment, the Constitution requires participation by the public for three months after it has been introduced in the House.

On Saturday, Mr Mohamed challenged party leaders and male MPs to rally their troops behind the Cabinet proposals to avoid a constitutional crisis after the next election in case the composition of the Eleventh Parliament were to be challenged on gender grounds.

Presidential aspirants Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto, who command a combined majority in the House, have pledged to rally their troops behind the proposals in Parliament.

Mr Ruto, the Eldoret North MP, criticised the call for revocation of the 80 new constituencies and county women’s seats, describing the intention as self-serving.