By STEVE MKAWALE
Parliament is breathing down the neck of the Executive, as it exercises enhanced constitutional powers, and ministers are feeling the heat.
As a pointer to how real this issue is, Prime Minister Raila Odinga Thursday protested to Members of Parliament over the new powers they had acquired as a result of the new Constitution. He said it had made life unbearable for Cabinet ministers.
The PM expressed ministersâ frustrations at the hands of the Legislature, a move Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim defended, saying it was democracy at work. Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Speaker Kenneth Marende at the Legislative Development Conference at Windsor Hotel, Nairobi, Thursday. MOSES OMUSULA/STANDARD]
The PM appeared to cajole MPs to go easy on the ministers, as he called for dialogue between the Executive and the Legislature over laws aimed at operationalising the new Constitution.
Raila said Parliament must give space to the Executive to function, lamenting it has been challenging for the Cabinet to process the draft pieces of legislations for onward transmission to the House and handling other functions of the Government.
"There has been friction between the Executive and the Legislature over the delay in processing draft legislations. What Parliament needs to understand is that the drafts must go through certain process before coming to the Cabinet for deliberations," the PM explained.
Maalim disagreed with the PM, arguing the friction was as a result of democracy. "Your frustrations are understandable if committees have become a thorn in the flesh of the Executive. That is the price of democracy. That is how things ought to be. If the two work harmoniously, there will be a cause to worry," he said.
House Speaker Kenneth Marende said the success of implementing the Constitution lay in the unity of leaders, and was optimistic the Coalition Government would live its full term.
"For the past four years, the Kenyan nation has, without doubt, added to international experience best practice in the management of a coalition government," he added.
The Speaker pointed out that whereas there have been prophets of doom who had all along wished for the worst to happen to the Coalition Government nothing of the sort had happened.
