Lawmakers in make-or-break sitting

The National Assembly sits this afternoon in a make-or-break session to reconstitute the House Business Committee (HBC) after a similar attempt flopped last week. 

MPs allied to Deputy President William Ruto, ANC leader Musalia Mudavadi and Ford-Kenya’s Moses Wetang’ula shot down a motion to reconstitute the powerful committee last Tuesday, plunging the sixth and last session of the 12th Parliament into uncertainty. 

Majority Leader Amos Kimunya (Kipipiri) urged Speaker Justin Muturi last Wednesday to schedule the sitting in a bid to save House business from collapse. The Speaker has suspended all committee meetings scheduled for this afternoon.

“This is to allow members to focus on and attend the chamber sitting in the afternoon of that day wherein motions related to the HBC will be considered,” directed Mr Muturi in a communication delivered to the 349 MPs by National Assembly Clerk Michael Sialai.

So important is the HBC chaired by the Speaker that the House cannot sit to transact its business until it is fully constituted. The budget, which is required to be passed by next month to finance the August 9 General Election, cannot be considered until the committee is formed.

Mr Kimunya did not respond to our inquiries on their preparedness to push through the motions but Majority Whip Emmanuel Wangwe (Navakholo) said they were ready.

“My troops are ready. They are raring to go,” he said, even as he accused the Dr Ruto-allied MPs of hypocrisy.

“It’s unfortunate to see those who want to be in State House plan to deny IEBC funds to conduct the election. Until HBC is fully constituted, it means the commission cannot be funded,” he added.

Critical on the business of the House when it sits today are two items. 

Reconstitution of the HBC

First, the House is required to adopt a procedural motion to rescind the decision it took last week rejecting the seven nominees to the committee. 

If this procedural motion sails through, then the House will proceed to have the motion on the reconstitution of the HBC moved and debated. 

“That pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 49 (2) (a), this House resolves to rescind its decision of Tuesday, January 25, 2022 regarding appointment of members to the House Business Committee,” reads order No. 8 on the parliamentary website. 

An order paper is a parliamentary document showing a schedule of business to be transacted in the House on a daily basis. 

Belgut MP Nelson Koech warned that the position of the MPs in rejecting the list last week may not have changed. 

The list rejected on Tuesday had Joyce Emanikor (Turkana County Woman MP), Shadrack Mose (Kitutu Masaba) and Kawira Mwangaza (Meru County Woman MP). Others were Abdikahim Osman (Fafi), Dr Makali Mulu (Kitui Central), Mishi Mboko (Likoni) and Godfrey Osotsi (nominated). 

Standing Order 171 (1) designates the Speaker, who shall be the chairperson, leader of majority and minority parties, majority and minority party whips as automatic members of the HBC by virtue of their positions. 

Although Standing Order 49 (2) of the National Assembly provides that no motion may be moved that is the same in substance as the one that was defeated during the preceding six months in the same session, the rejected names are the same ones that have been reintroduced. 

Financial turmoil

Ruto-Mudavadi-Wetang’ula allied MPs want some of the names dropped. 

Mr Koech noted that it was the agreement of their party leaders that MPs Aden Duale (UDA allied, Garissa Township), Dr Chris Wamalwa (Ford Kenya, Kiminini) and Vihiga County Woman Representative Beatrice Adagala (ANC) be part of the committee. 

“What is coming out is that the Leader of the Majority has even violated House rules. The standing orders are clear that the motion being reintroduced in the same session must not be similar in substance to the one that was negatived,” said Mr Koech. 

“He still has the time. If he listens and captures our demands in the list, we will have no problem with the motion,” said the Belgut MP, adding that the party had not yet taken a position on the matter.

But even as Mr Koech warned that House business may not be smooth-sailing, Gatanga’s Joseph Nduati urged his colleagues to exercise sobriety and pass the motion or risk shutting down the government. 

“Members need to realise that failure to approve the list will mean that the House cannot sit to transact business. We risk plunging the country into financial turmoil just because of our interests. Let’s rise above our partisan political leanings and see the bigger picture ahead,” said Mr Nduati. 

The action of the Ruto-Mudavadi-Wetang’ula allied MPs means that the House cannot pass the Budget and Appropriations Committee (BAC) report on 2021 Budget Policy Statement (BPS). 

Chaired by Kieni MP Kanini Kega, BAC had already finalised its report but can only table it if the HBC is working so that it can be prioritised for debate. The BPS projects the government to spend Sh3.31 trillion in the 2022/23 financial year.

Unless the committee is reconstituted to allow the House to sit and transact business, the country will not have a budget in the next financial year putting delivery of critical services like buying medical drugs, allocations to the 47 devolved units and financing of the August 9, 2022 general election in uncertainty.

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