NAIROBI: National Assembly's Majority Leader Aden Duale and the chairman of the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee Samuel Chepkonga (Ainabkoi) Wednesday told off women MPs over their uproar about the committee's Bill that seeks to indefinitely postpone the two-thirds gender rule.
Speaking to journalists at Parliament Buildings, the two MPs said instead of the women lawmakers seeking to have the Constitution of Kenya (amendment) Bill, 2015 withdrawn, they should bring their alternative views on how they think the two-thirds gender rule can be achieved.
"What Chepkonga has done is to give us a road-map on how we are going to make sure that not more than two thirds of elected and appointed leaders are from the same gender. If the women MPs have other views, let them bring the Bills. But I can assure them that this will not be solved through protests or press conferences, it can only be dealt with through laws passed by the House," said Duale.
The Majority Leader added: "Let the women bring as many as 100 Bills and we'll deal with the laws in the House."
Chepkonga, whom majority of women MPs have blamed for "sneaking" the Bill to the House Wednesday denied any wrongdoing and said the Bill was agreed within the committee. He refuted claims by his vice chairperson Priscilla Nyokabi and committee member Fatuma Ibrahim, that the Bill had never been discussed.
"I have no particular interest in the matter, because this is a very big issue and it will be solved through legislation. I don't sneak in things, as the chairman, what I present is what has been agreed upon by consensus or by the majority of members," said the chairman of the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee.
He said the push for the progressive realisation of the two-thirds gender rule was recommended by the Supreme Court, and the Bill was just the starting point for the National Assembly to gather the comments of the public. His Bill seeks to amend article 81(b) of the Constitution to ensure that laws for women inclusion in political seats is done "progressively".
The committee chairman said he will not be fazed by the threats of his women colleagues to rope in President Uhuru Kenyatta, his deputy William Ruto and opposition leader Raila Odinga to make sure he drops the Bill. He also waved away the threats of mass action.
"How people want to conduct these affairs (on the gender rule) is not the responsibility of the committee. It is not about politics. This is about the law, and as far as I am concerned, this is a legal process, not a political process," said Chepkonga.
He said the committee will publish the Bill and circulate it widely to receive as many comments as possible, and then the decision will be made on the floor of the House.
"If there are any comments, we will be ready to listen and amend as necessary. The committee has not said that this Bill is cast in stone," the Legal Affairs boss added.
The House team also added amendments to five laws: The Elections Act; the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Act; the Political Parties Act; the County Government Act and the National Gender and Equality Commission Act. The hurry for the MPs is to meet the judicial deadline of August 27 2015, by which they should enact a law to make sure at least a third of the MPs are women. After that, they will target county assemblies, the Senate and gubernatorial seats.
The MPs are keen to amend Article 81 by adding the word "progressively" so that it forces the electoral system to comply with the principle that "not more than two-third of the members of elective public bodies shall be of the same gender".
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