National Assembly · Afternoon Sitting
Thursday, 2 March 2023
Members debated the nomination of Hon. Shadrack Mose as Solicitor‑General, with several MPs expressing support and procedural motions to conclude the discussion. The debate then shifted to an urgent adjournment motion highlighting escalating banditry and insecurity in the North Rift, citing displaced families, burnt schools, loss of livestock, and alleged complicity of some political figures. MPs called for stronger government action and accountability of the security forces. Members debated extending the time limits for reviewing the Budget Supplementary Estimates and the 2023 Debt Management Strategy, citing the need for thorough scrutiny given Kenya’s high public debt. A motion was also moved and seconded to approve Shadrack John Mose as Solicitor‑General after a detailed vetting report. Procedural motions were put and agreed without extensive debate, reflecting a largely procedural but concerned tone. Members debated a petition to broaden hardship-area criteria for teachers, emphasizing a national rather than constituency‑specific approach. The House also addressed a motion noting the Kenya delegation's report to the Inter‑Parliamentary Union and, notably, a request to adjourn to discuss escalating insecurity and cross‑border incursions in the North Rift counties. Procedural exchanges continued with acknowledgments of school visits and routine question periods.
Serjeant-at-Arms, can you ring the Quorum Bell? Hon. Members, we now have quorum to transact business. Clerk-at-the-Table.
[(The Quorum Bell was rung)]
Order, Hon. Members. I have two Petitions to present. You know that after a Petition is presented, you have 30 minutes to make any comments. I will combine both and give you 30 minutes to make any comments that you may wish to make.
Hon. Members, there is a Petition regarding the amendment to the Kenya Information and Communications Act. Article 119 of the Constitution accords any person the right to petition Parliament to consider any matter within its authority. Further, Standing Order 225 (2) (b) requires the Speaker to report to the House any Petitions, other than those presented by a Member. In this regard, I wish to rep…
Having established that the matter raised in the Petition is well within the authority of this House, and further that the matters raised in this Petition are not pending before any court of law, constitutional or legal body, I hereby commit the Petition to the Public Petitions Committee for consideration pursuant to Standing Order 208A. The Committee is required to consider the Petition and repor…
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to comment on one of the petitions, specifically the one by Fredrick Gaya on the gazettement of Rachuonyo
North Sub-County as a hardship area. This hardship area debate has not begun now. It is time the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) provides this House with the information on its classification of hardship areas. I remember in the 11th Parliament, we spoke about Gilgil. I also spoke about it in the 12th Parliament. I know you have committed it to the Public Petitions Committee but, at the end of t…
Hon. Emmanuel Wangwe, three minutes.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I want to comment on the Petition by one Mr Patrick on power, and the issue of the digital economy. The world is now a global village, and we need to align Kenya to the global village. Whereas Patrick has mentioned the issue of amending the law to align it with existing infrastructure, it is also important that we look at the institutions that are empowered to provide the…
Hon. Dido Raso.
Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. I wish to comment on the two petitions. I think it is satisfying to see citizens participating in the making of the law. On the Petition on ICT, I think it is not just about the new frontier. It is the frontier of our times and of the next many generations. We need to look at what is happening around the world. All communication superhighways are not roads. It is…
Hon. Waweru.
Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. I will limit my comments to the Petitioner who has petitioned this House on matters to do with ICT. In the last Parliament, this House, in its own wisdom, decided that petitions should go to the Public Petitions Committee. Hon. Speaker, Standing Order No.1 gives you discretion, as the Chair, to decide what is fit to do. The point I want to make is that this Peti…
Your time is up. Hon. Okuome.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I want to comment on the Petition regarding the hardship areas. Karachuonyo or Rachuonyo North is my constituency, and I represent it. I am very happy that one of my constituents has written what you have read to us. What he has said is, indeed, true. Karachuonyo has been going through a very difficult time for many years. It is one of the oldest constituencies in independ…
Wanyonyi Tim, Member for Westlands.
Thank you Hon. Speaker. I wish to comment on the Petition on ICT. As a country, we need to move with currency. Recently, when we were in Mombasa, we interacted with the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) , the national broadcaster. They commented that they are grappling with obsolete equipment in their studios and, as a result, they are unable to compete effectively with other media houses becau…
Mulyungi Gideon, Mwingi Central.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to support the two petitions. Starting with the one by Patrick Kaberia on the amendment of the Kenya Information and Communications Act, we are in the digital era and things have turned
high-tech. Therefore, we are faced with a lot of threats through technology which come in different forms like theft, mobile technology, hacking, abusive and indecent behaviour, ethnicity, insecurity of the country and digital gender violence. Therefore, I support this Petition. On the hardship areas, Karachuonyo is not alone. Even Mwingi Central in Kitui County is also a semi-arid area where peo…
Hon. Milemba Omboko, Emuhaya.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. The reason why teachers really suffer because of hardship allowance is because civil servants wanted to align themselves to areas gazetted by the Teacher Service Commission (TSC) . They forgot that teachers go deep inside, while civil servants stay in commercial centres. Karachuonyo has really suffered since the time of Okiki Amayo, as the Hon. Member has put it. Several …
Thank you so much, Hon. Speaker. I wish to comment on both petitions. In the first one, for the last five or six years, we have responded to developments in ICT, with a lot of laws criminalising cybersecurity and trying to almost muzzle that sector. In the last few years, we have seen many young people get employed on Tik Tok and WhatsApp. As you know, content creators earn a living in this sector…
Hon. Murugara Gitonga of Tharaka Constituency.
Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. My comment on the first Petition is to associate myself with Hon. John Kiarie. I believe the Departmental Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation, where Hon. John Kiarie is the Chair, would most certainly be the best to handle the issues raised in that Petition regarding the proposed amendments. Thus, you may exercise your discretion and make such …
I brought a Petition here and we successfully prosecuted it, praying that my Tharaka Constituency becomes a hardship area. However, there have been bottlenecks from the Government, the Ministry of Labour and the Office of the President. Up to now, that declaration has not been made. It is a high time the Government moved with speed to implement even some of the resolutions we make here. I support…
Hon. Marwa Kitayama of Kuria East.
Thank you for giving me this opportunity. Kuria has been mentioned adversely and wrongly. Kuria has four sub-counties, and only one sub-county is designated as a hardship area. It is not true. However, I support that the area in question, Rachuonyo North, be accorded this status because we understand the problems that obtain in that area. Secondly, with all due respect, I think the committees of …
Hon. Atandi Samuel of Alego Usonga.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I would like to comment on the second Petition on the gazettement of Rachuonyo North Sub- County as a hardship area. This is a very viable Petition. However, I urge the Committee that is going to handle this matter to benefit from the work that has been done by the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) . It has done a very good Report on hardship areas in the country. The…
Thank you, Hon. Atandi. Hon. Gichimu Githinji of Gichugu.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I have not been to North Karachuonyo and, therefore, I believe I am not best placed to comment on that Petition at this time. I will wait until the relevant Committee brings its report. This is a matter that can also be picked by the Departmental Committee on Education. I believe the Petition is because of the benefits that teachers derive from the areas gazetted as hardsh…
The last, Amb. Benjamin Lang'at of Ainamoi.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I thank the Member who has brought the Petition on hardship areas for teachers. Although he has mentioned his constituency, this matter that needs to be looked at nationally as it affects all teachers within our Republic. The criteria and parameters initially used were limited. It is time we revisited the parameters so that we bring on board many other places that seem to …
Thank you. We will close there on petitions. The petitions are committed to the Committee on Public Petitions. On the issue raised by the Member for Dagoretti South, you know you are not, as a committee, limited to do your work because there is a petition. You can, on your own volition and motion, pick up any statute within your jurisdiction, scan through it, propose amendments, and bring them to …
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. With your indulgence, also allow me to welcome in a very special way, Mwiki Primary School. I visited the primary school way back in 2018 with His Excellency the President when he was the Deputy President. It is among the most populous primary schools in this country. It took the President’s intervention to build at least five new classrooms for them. Therefore, I welcome …
Hon. Leader of Majority Party, you have skipped one; Mabera.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker.
Hon. Leader of the Majority Party, you have switched off.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker.
Thank you, Hon. Leader of the Majority Party. Next is the Member of Parliament for Dagoretti South, Hon. John Kiarie.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table:
Thank you, Hon. Kiarie. Next Order!
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, this House notes the Report of the Kenya Delegation to the 145th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and related meetings which were held in Kigali Rwanda from the 11th to 15th October 2022, laid on the Table of the House on Thursday, 2nd March 2023. I thank you, Hon. Speaker.
Hon. Cecilia Ngitit, Member for Turkana County.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise under Standing Order 33 (1) to discuss rising insecurity cases in the North Rift Counties. Pursuant to Standing Order No.33 (1) , I rise to seek leave for the Adjournment of this House in order to discuss a definite matter of urgent national importance regarding the rising insecurity in the North Rift counties. There is great concern over the rising insecurity case…
Hon. Cecilia, you need 20 Members to stand in support of your request before I accede to it. The support is overwhelming. I thank you Members. You may take your seats. Order, Hon. Members. You have given the effect already. Hon. Cecilia, your Motion will be slated under Order No.10 or at one hour to the end of time, whichever comes first. Next Order.
[(Several Members stood up in their places)]
Hon. Abdirahman Mohammed. We will start with Questions. There are two Questions today. The first one is by Hon Peter Masara, Member for Suna West.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Pursuant to Standing Order No. 42 (a) (5) , I rise to ask the following Question to the Teachers Service Commission.
Thank you, Hon. Member. The Question goes to the Departmental Committee on Education. Hon. Members, the next Question is by Hon. Ruweida Obo. She has requested that she has an emergency in her constituency and so, the Question will be deferred to Tuesday afternoon.
[(Question 12/2023 deferred)]
Next is Hon. Abdirahman Mohamed Abdi, Member for Lafey.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I rise to request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Social Protection regarding the implementation status of the cash transfer programme for older persons in the country. It is of great concern that the number of older persons from vulnerable backgrounds, particularly in Lafey Co…
Next is the Leader of the Majority Party.
Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (a) , I rise to give the following Statement on behalf of the House Business Committee, which met on Thursday, 28th February 2023, to prioritise the business for consideration during the week. As Members are aware, the House approved the Report of the Budget and Appropriations Committee on the First Supplementary Estimates for the …
Reading of the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill (National Assembly Bill No.60 of 2022), should any of that business not be concluded today. Finally, the House Business Committee will reconvene again on Tuesday, 7th March 2023 to schedule business for the rest of the week. I now wish to lay this Statement on the Table of the House.
Thank you, Leader of the Majority Party. Hon. Members, before I go to the next Order, I wish to acknowledge the presence, in the Speaker’s Gallery, of Kanjalu Girls High School from Tigania West in Meru.
[(Applause)]
Chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee.
Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Procedural Motion: THAT, notwithstanding the provisions of Standing Order 232 (7) relating to presentation of the Budget Policy Statement, this House resolves to extend the period for consideration of the Budget Policy Statement, 2023 by a period of 14 days from 1st March 2023. In brief, the reason for this prayer is that the law was made for man, and not…
Public Finance Management (PFM) Act. We will bring recommendations that instead of the 14 days to report to this House after the tabling of the BPS, we should extend this to 28 days. This is so that we can have these considerations done in ample time because this is a very important exercise. Hon. Speaker, I move and call upon Hon. Gabriel Kagombe, the Member for Gatundu South to second this Proc…
Hon. Kagombe.
Hon. Speaker, I stand to second this Procedural Motion because of the seriousness of the timelines in place. Having looked at the Budget Estimates that came to Parliament from the National Treasury, the timeline is not sufficient and I, therefore, second the Motion. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.
[(Question proposed)]
Put the question.
There being no interest in contributing to the debate, I will put the Question. Next Order.
[(Question put and agreed to)]
Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, notwithstanding the provisions of Standing Order 232A (4) relating to presentation of the Debt Management Strategy, this House resolves to extend the period for consideration of the Debt Management Strategy, 2023, by a period of 10 days from 1st March 2023. Hon. Speaker, this House is aware that Kenya’s public debt stock has reached Ksh9.15 t…
The Member for Gatanga.
Hon. Speaker, I wish to take this opportunity to second this Motion, bearing in mind the importance of this Motion and, in particular, the debt management in this country. Our public debt stands at over Ksh9.1 trillion, and Ksh1.3 trillion of our national revenue goes to service that debt. It is appropriate and important that we give each and every Member of this Parliament an opportunity to venti…
Thank you, Hon. Member.
[(Question proposed)]
There being no interest in debating the Motion, I now put the question. Next Order.
[(Question put and agreed to)]
Hon. Members, the time being