Cord and Jubilee marshal MPs to extend deadline for crucial Bills

What you need to know:

  • The Constitution requires that at least two thirds of MPs — 233 — approve the extension of the deadline.
  • House leaders accused the Executive of delaying the preparation of the Bills despite pressure to do so.

MPs have extended the deadline by which five crucial Bills should have been passed despite opposition from an agency mandated to scrutinise the proposed laws.

According to the Constitution promulgated in 2010, the Bills should be passed by August 27.

But House leaders on Tuesday marshalled 266 MPs to be in the House to approve the motion and extend the deadline by nine months.

The Bill was sponsored by the Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee chaired by Githunguri MP Njoroge Baiya. The new deadline is thus March 2015.

House leaders accused the Executive of delaying the preparation of the Bills despite pressure to do so.

The Constitution requires that at least two thirds of MPs — 233 — approve the extension of the deadline.

They had agreed at an informal meeting popularly known as kamukunji earlier in the day to endorse the extension and give themselves more time to scrutinise and pass the six Bills — Public Service (Values and Principles) Bill, Persons Deprived of Liberty Bill, Environmental Management and Coordination Bill, Public Audit Bill and Procurement and Asset Disposal Bill.

COULD BE CONCLUDED

But in a statement, the chairman of the Commission on the implementation of the Constitution (CIC), Mr Charles Nyachae, differed with Parliament on the extension, saying four of the Bills could be concluded within the timelines set out by the Constitution.

“Other than the Public Audit Bill and the Public Procurement and Disposal Bill, all other Bills can be concluded within the timelines set out by the Constitution”, Mr Nyachae said in the statement sent to newsrooms on Tuesday evening.

In Parliament, Mr Baiya said the Bills to provide for fair administrative action, fair hearing and consumer protection had already been enacted.

He said after consultation with the CIC and the Attorney General, the CIOC had established that the Bills were at various stages of publication.

The Victim Protection Bill and the Environment Management and Coordination Bill have been published while that on public audit and another on the procurement of public goods and service had been drafted.

“We require at least nine months for those that will take most time,” said Mr Baiya.

Deputy Minority Leader Jakoyo Midiwo said the Executive should have done more to speed up the Bills.

“These Bills should have been here. We have had since 2010 to bring them here,” he added.