Makai,
Thats whats interest towards a common goal is all about...not minitutes of fame through demos....and uncalled for immature actions.
Disclosure: I'm not a member of the media fraternity and neither work for a media house at the time of writing this message. I support the manner in which members of the media handled themselves...maturely and within their constitutionally guaranteed rights. If there had been chaos, stone throwing or other disorderly conduct I might be able to concur how this might amount to seeking fame or engaging in immature actions. Let us be respectful of the media's right to peacefully congregate, exercise their right to freedom of expression, associate and present petitions on matters affecting their industry and livelihoods, after all they are not engaged in this as a matter of regular practice. Going back to the process. Things went wrong at the legislative stage when the MP introduced an agenda that was not subjected to exhaustive debate by a full house or the semblance of it. The evidence is that 27 MPs voted for the measure, the house has 222 voting members thus a mere 12% of the elected representatives of the people passed the clause. Was this legal under the rules? Yes. Did it reflect the wishes of the people and/or the government? Very unlikely given the reaction by society. Indeed one must ask where the other 195 members were when the vote was being held. Had the house been full, I'm sure there would have been substantive debate and the final ammended clause would have better reflected that debate. If the wananchi's representatives are not present to convey their views and opposition to the bill then wananchi have no choice but to express themselves through other legal means. What other avenues did wananchi and the media have to get the matter sorted out at this late in the legislative process without first making sure that the focus was on the issue? Securing an appointment with the President for 300 people in a timely fashion prior to his signing the bill would be near impossible The possible solutions are: Political: Kenyans can elect hard working MPs from amongst themselves who will go beyond technically reporting to work and be fully engaged in the legislative process. Since there are no performance contracts attached to these positions this is a hard one to enforce except once every 5 years. The possibility of recall petitions and elections may put MPs on notice that they could be recalled by their constitutents should they fail to perform. Expecting MPs to pass a "job elimination" law that affects them any time soon is akin to wishful thinking Legal Procedures: Parliament can amend its standing orders procedures to ensure that bills are not passed without a quorum present. As one newspaper article recently observed, a single MP could single handledly pass a bill! Hearings: Parliamentary committees can conduct multiple public hearings to obtain representations from members of the public and stakeholders. The onus falls on all parties for this to be successful. Such hearings should be easily accessible, well publicised and attendees should strive to attend or submit their written comments. Educational: Far broader educational initiatives for citizens to understand how the legislative and parliamentary processes work at the primary and secondary school levels will help educate future voters/constituents on how they can be better engaged in the process. I doubt that there are many Kenyans who take the time to write to their MP to share their opinions on upcoming and pending legislative matters. Better Access to MP offices: Instead of seeking huge pay raises, it would serve to spend the funds to provide better and easier access to MPs through establishing or enhancing offices dedicated to providing an audience to constituents. For example provision of toll free numbers to MP offices and online contact forms through www.bunge.go.ke, having staff dedicated to taking these calls and presenting issues to the MPs would go a long way in getting constituents views across. These are just a few thoughts on how we can avoid such legislative mishaps from happening in future, they are not overnight possibly not even the right solutions. I'm sure others may have better ideas. I have hope I have helped point out where things went wrong. On 8/16/07, Benjamin Makai <benmakai@yahoo.com> wrote:
Theuri !! My questions still upholds.. at what stage or phase of the process can one cite and say it is where things went wrong? Enlighten us....please !!
I beleive in evidence..Am not in governemnt nor am in evidenceless scenarios.... We can only learn by highlighting where their was deviation from the norms or agreed ways acceptable by all standards..proffessional, political etc.......Lets not just be a a list of people who support anything based on nothing.
Educate others whom may share my concerns,at what stage of bill making process things went wrong..Lets brainstorm on possible causes of this, and at the same time identify the solutions to this now and in future..By doing so, then we shall be building a healthy nation.....In ICT evidence is key to an concern raised and at what level it happened....do we have auditors..more so systems and processes auditors in this list?
Think of it and ask what can be done to ensure minimal people will not pass what we dont agree on in the future and how all stakeholders opinions can always be factored in any situation be it that is being effected by technocrats, politicians etc for they are not the final say...and dwell on what is practical and realistic using approved and acceptable measures and indicators.
Thats whats interest towards a common goal is all about...not minitutes of fame through demos....and uncalled for immature actions.