MPs give priority to issues affecting ordinary Kenyans

Parliament is an arm of government bestowed with enormous powers and huge responsibilities. As the people’s representative, it ought to be the vanguard of public interest. It is meant to be the biggest anchor of good governance and constitutionalism.

That is why it is the only arm that is responsible for the appropriation of public resources and the watchdog over the execution and implementation of public policy. It has the authority to hold all public institutions and officers to account and check their performance of public duties.

That said, the public evaluates their performance based on the quality of debate and the utility of the decisions made. However, of great concern to the public has been the lacklustre performance and underwhelming efforts towards addressing people-centric issues in the House. Kenyans, in various fora, have decried the little concern their representatives have shown on matters that affect them directly.

The 2023 Parliamentary Scorecard by Mzalendo indicated that 187 members of the National Assembly, which is 68% of the membership, spoke less than 10 times for 10 months of parliamentary duties. This was period between September 2022 to June 2023. It also observed that only 16 members contributed more than 30 times in the House at the same period.

This indicates that the majority of the members are inactive in the House. Understandably, during this period, some highly contentious and unpopular Bills like the Finance Bill, 2023 was debated during this time. It is not a surprise that the same Bill was enacted only for the court to declare it unconstitutional for want of efficient public participation among others reasons.

Grappling with challenges

More concerning is that in the same period Kenyans were grappling with challenges such as the high cost of living and inflation, poor implementation of the CBC curriculum, public debts, poor healthcare and unemployment. Which begs the question, where was the energy, the enthusiasm and interest with which the impeachment motion of the Deputy President was done when Kenyans needed their representatives most?

No doubt Parliament’s show of zeal in assuring accountability is key in engendering good governance. The lack of the same will certainly facilitate corruption and abuse of authority by public institutions and officers. In the recent past, some notable businesses that brought wide criticism and bad name to Parliament in the eyes of the public were the vetting of persons in key offices like the Cabinet Secretaries, the passing of controversial and unpopular Bills like Finance Bill, 2023, the Social Health bills and the Affordable Houses Bill. In fact, undertaking meaningful public engagement exercises was an issue of monumental concern in most cases.

The National Assembly’s rare display of oomph and vigour in the DP’s impeachment could have assuredly benefitted Kenyans a lot if done consistently. The member's reference to judiciously respect their oath of office to undertake their duties without fear, favour, ill will and consciously was commendable. However, their inconsistency, especially when addressing more pressing issues, invites questions as to their objectivity and dutifulness.

Mr Abdi is a lawyer and governance analyst. [email protected]