Drafters of the 2010 Constitution did not want a situation where one gender is overly represented in Parliament.
As such, they stipulated that the National Assembly and the Senate should not have more than two-thirds of their members of the same gender.
“Not more than two-thirds of the members of elective public bodies shall be of the same gender,” says Article 81 (b) of the Constitution.
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Currently, the National Assembly has 75 women MPs — 22 elected from the 290 constituencies in the last election, six nominated in the 12 nomination slots while 47 were elected as woman reps.
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[li]Why has the section not been adhered to, eight years later?[/li][/ul]
Because the Constitution did not dictate on how the two-thirds gender rule can be implemented, the attorney-general’s office sought an advisory from the Supreme Court on how to meet the requirement.
In December 2012, the apex court determined that gender principle had not been transformed into a full right capable of direct enforcement, advising that there be progressive implementation within five years of the promulgation of the Constitution.
“We are of the majority opinion that legislative measures for giving effect to the one-third-to-two-thirds gender principle, under Article 81(b) of the Constitution and in relation to the National Assembly and Senate, should be taken by August 27, 2015,” said a Bench of five Supreme Court judges.
However, by August 2015, still there was no law passed on the case, and it made the Centre for Rights Education and Awareness, Community Advocacy and Awareness Trust to sue the two Houses of Parliament for the delay.
The Kenya National Human Rights Commission was also part of the case.
In a verdict issued in March 2017, High Court judge John Mativo said that if the gender principle had not been implemented by June that year, anyone could write to the Chief Justice to advise the president to dissolve Parliament.
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[li]What is contained in Mr Duale’s bill?[/li][/ul]
At the core of the bill is a nomination criterion to ensure that at any given time, the number of women is at least a third of the total.
Because it is hard to legislate on elective positions, the bill proposes that after an election has been finalised and the gender numbers calculated, the right number of women be nominated.
Numbers for the nomination will be shared by political parties depending on their strength in Parliament.
Currently, the National Assembly has 75 women MPs — 22 elected from the 290 constituencies in the last election, six nominated in the 12 nomination slots while 47 were elected as woman reps.
The Senate has three elected women from the 47 counties, while 18 are nominated.
The passage of Mr Duale’s bill could see the country pay about Sh60 million more in monthly salaries and other allowances to the nominated women MPs.
PS: Hii inakuja wakati tunataka referundum ili we abolish kiti ya woman rape na senate
Duale is spearheading this and over the weekend mtu wa handshake na kanda ya mkono waliunga bill mkono,practically no opposition.
UK na WSR are for it too.
lets wait and see. am already tuned in to KBC radio Taifa 100.8 FM kigojea mpigs waanze mjadala
Hii kitu should be shot down immediately. An additional 500 million annually to pay these additional women MPs, yet the ones who are there ata hakuna kitu ya maana wamefanya worth mentioning.
