Kenya’s Parliament is undoubtedly one of the most powerful houses on the
continent, with our members of parliament being also the highest paid, MPs have
made Kenyans believe that they are so special that even the voter who put them
in parliament does not matter. Instead of Parliament leading national agendas
and legislating on plans that will improve the lives of Kenyans, Parliament has
been a show down of supremacy and chest thumbing, a big brother or sheriff
mentality, keen to show other arms of government that they come second to them.
The rule of law is one thing Mps disregard with no
fear, attempts by the Judiciary to mitigate bad laws passed by this house have
not been received well, Parliament in protests responds by threats of cutting
its budget. Kenyans elected Parliament to represent, legislation and oversight,
roles the house has not done with zeal. Key Parliamentary committees have also
been rocked with graft and bribery claims to edit watchdog reports and shield
perpetrators. The constitution is very clear on separation of power between the
three arms of government while respecting the place of the normal Kenyan
citizen, a honorable behaving badly do not indeed deserve that title and
therefore Kenyans need to be very critical of a dictatorial house that does not
even regard the place of other institutions anchored in the law.
A vibrant and issue focused Parliament is an
important component in a growing democracy like ours, Parliament indeed shoulders the aspirations of the people and
the Kenyan one should live to these ideals, conduct their business with decorum
and focus on key issues that affect Kenyans.
The writer is the deputy C.E.O of Intellectus Consultancy and a training Governance, Devolution and Elections expert,this article first appeared in the Sunday Standard of 1st March, 2015
