CSs to appear in Parliament to answer questions raised by lawmakers

From left, Immigration and Boarder Control PS.Gordon Kihalangwa, Interior CS Fred Matiangi, CAS Patrick Ole Ntutu and Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnett when they appeared before National Assembly Departmental Committee regarding the influx of illicit goods in the country at Parliament. [Boniface Okendo/Standard]

Cabinet secretaries will be required to appear before House committees to respond to questions if amendments to the Standing Orders are adopted.

The Procedure and House Rules Committee proposed the reintroduction of Question Time to give members opportunity to ask the CSs questions in the National Assembly.

The CSs will, in turn, appear before relevant committees to give answers.

The committee chaired by National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi made the recommendations after MPs complained that departmental committee chairs who previously responded to their queries failed to give satisfactory answers.

The committee argued that the reintroduction of Question Time would help reduce the number of petitions and statements raised by MPs.

“The requirement that chairs of committees respond to members’ questions faced challenges, as they could not comprehensively speak on behalf of the Executive,” reads a section of the committee’s report.

Brief questions

If the new rules are adopted, MPs will be allowed to ask 10 to 15 brief questions that will be placed in the Order Paper each Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

In the report, the lawmakers argued that the reintroduction of Question Time would create enthusiasm and raise expectations of both MPs and the public like in the previous Parliaments.

The committee also argued that no supplementary question would be allowed on the floor of the House.

“The Speaker will have powers to drop any question asked, especially if a member is absent, while responses to written questions will be sent directly to members instead of committees,” the report read in part.

In the 11th Parliament, during QT, 391 questions were submitted to the CSs, of which 118 were responded to while in the 12th Parliament, 73 requests were made, 31 submitted and only 15 responded to.

The decision comes after an attempt to have CSs appear before lawmakers in the National Assembly in 2014 under the Committee on General Oversight was suspended because it did not have legal backing.