MPs reject land clause in draft constitution

The Parliamentary Select Committee was Monday reported to have deleted a section in the revised draft establishing a National Lands Commission.

The MPs are said to have taken the action because of the anticipated laws that will follow the National Land Policy, which was passed by Parliament in December.

“There was a feeling that the issues in the draft will be taken care of by the proposed national land policy,” an MP told the Daily Nation.

Community land

All references to community land are also said to have been removed from the draft. Unconfirmed reports from the meeting indicated that the MPs want the provisions placed in Acts of Parliament.

Sources also indicated that Lands minister James Orengo, who is also a member of the committee, was mandated to table a Bill taking care of the issues raised. The proposed National Land Act is expected to enact the provisions of the policy.

But it was still unclear by Monday evening which other sections of the chapter on land the committee had recommended be removed from the draft.

Under the National Land Policy, all land laws will be consolidated and a National Land Commission set up to be the custodian of public land and to administer all land across the country.

The government has also been given the green light to reduce the controversial colonial 999-year leases to 99 years, which has been fiercely opposed by beneficiaries.

Similar provisions are provided for in the draft being reviewed by MPs in Naivasha. The document proposes that the National Land Commission manage public land on behalf of the national and devolved governments.

PSC is also to recommend to the national government a national land policy and investigate disputes about land ownership, occupation and access to public land in any area as provided for by legislation.

The 26 members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on law reform started their second week of negotiations yesterday on contentious issues in the draft.

They made remarkable progress in the first week, reaching agreements on the most contentious issues, such as system of government and the executive.

On Monday, the MPs invited scholars in Christianity and Islam to help them reach a decision on whether to retain Kadhi courts in the proposed constitution.

Debate on the Kadhi Courts, which have ignited sharp differences between Christian churches and Muslims, was resolved when MPs agreed to retain the kadhi courts in the draft constitution.

“There has been no disagreement whatsoever over this issue,” Mr Ababu Namwamba, the vice-chairman of the PSC.

The MPs, who had taken a weekend off, gathered at the Great Rift Valley Lodge to discuss remaining chapters and, possibly, revisit some that were not fully exhausted.

PSC chairman Mohamed Abdikadir said he expected the team to conclude debate on the draft by the end of Tuesday.

“I am confident that we will finish on schedule. We will tackle devolution tomorrow (Tuesday),” he said.

The MPs are said to have agreed that they should call in two scholars representing Muslims and Christians to shed more light on the matter.

While Muslims have argued for the retention of the Kadhi Courts in the new constitution, some Christian churches have demanded the removal of the clause on grounds that Kenya is a secular State.

Even though Kadhi Courts are recognised in the current Constitution, Evangelical churches have threatened to vote against the draft law should the clause be retained.

During Monday’s discussion on the Judiciary, it was reported that MPs agreed to remove the Constitutional Court from the document. The team was said to have proposed that matters relating to the Constitution be handled by a division of the High Court.

The MPs did not discuss the provision requiring current judges to be vetted before continuing to serve. The matter will come up for discussion tomorrow when they discuss the transition clauses.

The draft proposes that all judges step aside to be reappointed once they are cleared of corruption. Any judge who fails to go through the vetting process will have to resign from the Judiciary. The proposal has faced opposition from the judges who say this will cripple the judicial system.

The draft also proposes to limit the age of the Chief Justice to 70 years. The MPs were also scheduled to discuss the chapters on Public Service and National Security.

On Tuesday morning the MPs should discuss resolutions on the Executive, Devolved Government, Representation and the Legislature. Even though they have agreed on a pure presidential system, they will discuss the checks and balances that will be put in place to stop the office holder from becoming a despot.

They will fix the levels of devolution and revisit the powers of the Senate.

On Monday, we learnt that PNU would on Tuesday propose the number of regions to be increased from 18 to 33. The party is recommending a three-tier devolution structure encompassing the central government, regional governments and CDF.

PNU also says the 2.5 per cent share of the budget allocated to constituencies be increased to 12.5 per cent.

On Sunday, ODM is said to have resolved to push for 20 per cent of national resources to be allocated to regions.

“The natural resources in any region, irrespective of any system of devolution, should vest with the national government and all taxation matters shall rest with the Central Government,” a PNU MP said.

The MPs are expected to strike a deal on the new additional constituencies with PNU pushing for at least 300 seats while ODM wants no more than 225 constituencies.