Opinion: Why Kenya needs a much stronger Senate in future

A large representation by astute lawyers in a Kenyan Senate that turned out limp is a clear indication that very few appreciated the new system that came with the 2010 constitution. The new constitution envisaged four equal arms operating in fidelity to the constitution. The legislative function was to be executed horizontally too. Both Houses were to operate in consultation with each other.

The success of the new system depended on the good faith and reasonableness of the shareholders. Success has proved elusive this far, though. Not only is the required reasonableness a rarity, horizontal legislature is a curious experiment that makes a case for a return to vertical bicameralism than it promises success. As it is, our Senate is erroneously constructed and therefore impotent. Supremacy wars between the two houses attest to this.