Anti-media clauses to go, MP assures

Eldas MP Adan Keynan on Monday agreed to delete offensive clauses in the Power and Privileges Bill, which were seen as aimed at curtailing media coverage of Parliament.

Mr Keynan backed down from his previous tough stance, telling journalists in Nairobi that he had seriously reflected on the matter, and decided to delete the sections.

Mr Keynan’s insistence on passing the Bill in its previous form, had attracted the wrath of media practitioners and the public, who saw the Bill as retrogressive and meant to deny Kenyans their right to information.

Some of the sections he had proposed prescribed hefty penalties for journalists found guilty of defamation.

The fines sought for reporters were seen as meant to gag the media and curtail the freedom to report. A Sh500,000 fine for an ambiguously defined offence of defamation was seen as too punitive.

Other offending clauses affecting the public’s freedom to access public information was the requirement for journalists covering parliamentary committee proceedings to first seek the authority of the Speaker of the National Assembly or Senate, or parliamentary committee chairmen.

“I have done a lot of consultations with media practitioners to understand the issues and on reflection, I have decided I will not be the one to introduce clauses that would curtail media freedom in carrying out parliamentary reporting,” he said.

Mr Keynan said he had introduced fresh clauses to replace Clauses 27 and 34 of the Bill, and it targets MPs rather than journalists.

But he defended his actions, saying he was a “conveyor belt for the Parliamentary Service Commission”.

The MP read out a memorandum by the Kenya Parliamentary Journalists Association Chairperson, Ms Roselyne Obala, who suggested that the two offending clauses be removed, together with a third one that spelt out the harsh penalties.