Senators to vote on Ruaraka land report

Senate in a past session. The Senate is set to vote on whether to indict Interior CS Fred Matiang’i and Education PS Belio Kipsang over Ruaraka land scandal. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • In 2013, the House resolved that there should be at least 24 elected senators before such a motion touching on counties is taken, to avoid its being lost on a technicality.

Senators are set to vote on whether to indict Interior CS Fred Matiang’i and Education PS Belio Kipsang over the possible loss of Sh1.5 billion through compulsory acquisition of a Ruaraka piece of land on which two public schools stand.

The vote was scheduled for Tuesday and the motion had been scheduled on the order paper. But when the table clerk called the vote, Speaker Kenneth Lusaka pushed the vote to Tuesday next week, citing a lack of quorum.

When debate on the report ended on Thursday last week, Deputy Speaker Kithure Kindiki declared that the motion concerns counties.

This introduced unforeseen dynamics in the determination of one of the most controversial motions in the House.

This means that voting will be through delegations, which, according to the Constitution, must be approved by half of the 47 senators.

In 2013, the House resolved that there should be at least 24 elected senators before such a motion touching on counties is taken, to avoid its being lost on a technicality.