Journalists ordered to dress in suit for assembly sessions

By Steve Mkawale

Nakuru, Kenya:  Journalists in Nakuru County must upgrade their wardrobes if they wish to continue covering County Assembly sittings.

The county’s administration issued a new dress code that must be strictly adhered to by staff, Members of County Assembly and journalists.

Journalists who have a penchant for wearing T-shirts, jeans and traditional attire will not be allowed to access the Chamber during sessions. They must be in suit and tie, according to the new dress code.

Under the code, Members of the County Assembly should wear a suit and a tie. Ladies must wear trouser or skirt suits. On Tuesday, county security officers barred journalists from accessing the Chamber, saying they were under strict instructions to ensure members of the media adhere to the dressing code.

The session convened to elect the Deputy Speaker of the County Assembly went on without media coverage. Naisuit ward representative Samuel Tanui was elected to the position.

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Speaker Susan Kihika said Members of County Assembly were given the dressing code to avoid standards slipping down in the Chamber. 

She said: “I do not see why journalists should be concerned. They too need to be smartly dressed. The wearing of a neck tie and being in a suit shows some level of seriousness.”

 She said members taking part in debates should dress in “what most people would regard as business attire”.