Photo credit: Wilberforce Okwiri/Standard
Introduction
This blog post is on Kenya’s ongoing attempt to amend the Constitution through the popular initiative. This post is structured in two parts: the first part, dealing with the procedure laid out in the Constitution; and the second part, providing an overview of the Punguza Mizigo Bill. A critique of the Bill will be offered later.
Amendment of the Constitution by popular initiative
Two days ago, we got news that our electoral body, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, had verified that the popular initiative by the Thirdway Alliance to amend the Constitution was supported by 1,222,541 verified registered voters. Earlier on, the IEBC confirmed in its Press Release that it had received the draft Punguza Mizigo Bill on 28th February 2019. The draft Bill, known as the Punguza Mizigo (Constitution of Kenya Amendment) Bill, or simply the Punguza Mizigo Bill will be submitted to each county assembly for consideration. Punguza Mizigo in the Kiswahili language translates to lessen burden. Each county assembly will have 3 months to either approve it or not.
There are two ways in which Kenya’s Constitution may be amended:
(i) Amendment by parliamentary initiative: The procedure is provided for under article 256 of the Constitution where a Bill to amend the Constitution may be introduced to either House of Parliament.
(ii) Amendment by popular initiative: The procedure is provided for under article 257 of the Constitution where an amendment to the Constitution may be proposed by a popular initiative signed by at least one million registered voters. This is the route that the Punguza Mizigo Bill has taken.
The Thirdway Alliance had the option of amending the constitution in the form of a general suggestion or through a formulated draft Bill. Article 257 (3) provides as follows-
257. (3) If a popular initiative is in the form of a general suggestion, the promoters of that popular initiative shall formulate it into a draft Bill.
So, the signatures have been verified as required under article 257(4). Subclause (4) provides as follows:
257. (4) The promoters of a popular initiative shall deliver the draft Bill and the supporting signatures to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, which shall verify that the initiative is supported by at least one million registered voters.
What next?
The IEBC is required to submit the Punguza Mizigo Bill to the 47 county assemblies for their consideration. They will have 3 months to approve the Bill. Article 257(5) provides as follows-
257. (5) If the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission is satisfied that the initiative meets the requirements of this Article, the Commission shall submit the draft Bill to each county assembly for consideration within three months after the date it was submitted by the Commission.
Once a county assembly has approved the draft Bill, the Speaker of the county assembly will deliver a copy of the draft Bill to both the Speaker of the National Assembly and the Senate. The Bill will be accompanied with a certificate that the county assembly has approved the Bill. In verbatim, article 257 (6) provides as follows-
257. (6) If a county assembly approves the draft Bill within three months after the date it was submitted by the Commission, the speaker of the county assembly shall deliver a copy of the draft Bill jointly to the Speakers of the two Houses of Parliament, with a certificate that the county assembly has approved it.
Majority of the county assemblies are required to approve the Bill for it to be introduced in Parliament (both the National Assembly and the Senate. Therefore, 24 counties have to approve the Bill. Article 257(7) provides as follows-
257. (7) If a draft Bill has been approved by a majority of the county assemblies, it shall be introduced in Parliament without delay.
Like the county assemblies, each House of Parliament will be required to support the Bill by a majority for it to progress to the next stage. Article 257(8) provides that a “Bill under this Article is passed by Parliament if supported by a majority of the members of each House”.
Let us suppose that the Bill is approved by a majority of members in each House, what happens next?
If the subject matter in the Bill is not one that attracts referendum (under article 255 of the Constitution), then the President will assent to the Bill within 30 days (article 256(4) of the Constitution). But if it is one that touches on any matter in article 255 of the Constitution (for example the term of office of the President like the one by the Punguza Mizigo Bill which proposes a presidential term to be a single seven-year term which makes the Bill one that has to be subjected to Referendum), then it will be subjected to referendum.
In a referendum scenario, this is what the Constitution envisages: Bill is sent to the President. IEBC conducts a national referendum for the Bill’s approval. The IEBC will have 90 days to go about this process. If the plebescite passes, the President assents to the Bill within 30 days.
For the lawyerly eyes, here is the legal abracadabra:
256. (4) Subject to clause (5), the President shall assent to the Bill and cause it to be published within thirty days after the Bill is enacted by Parliament.
(5) If a Bill to amend this Constitution proposes an amendment relating to a matter specified in Article 255(1)—
(a) the President shall, before assenting to the Bill, request the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to conduct, within ninety days, a national referendum for approval of the Bill; and
(b) within thirty days after the chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has certified to the President that the Bill has been approved in accordance with Article 255(2), the President shall assent to the Bill and cause it to be published.
The Punguza Mizigo (Constitution of Kenya Amendment) Bill 2019
The Thirdway Alliance’s Punguza Mizigo (Constitution of Kenya Amendment) Bill 2019 is now publicly available. Its long title is “a Bill to amend the Constitution of Kenya pursuant to the Popular Initiative under Article 257 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010”.
I notice that the Bill’s title is Punguza Mizigo (Constitution of Kenya Amendment) Bill 2019. It is catchy and I believe that the “punguza mizigo” (lessen burden) part is deliberate and smart. It is a phrase that resonates with Kenyans. I have an issue with where the second bracket should have been placed. If it were me, I would place it immediately after the word Kenya and also have the word Amendment bracketed too. But that is the pedantic me. I have also a problem with the short title. It provides that “This Bill may be cited as the PUNGUZA MIZIGO (Constitution of Kenya Amendment)Bill, 2019.” In legislative drafting circles, the practice is to knock off Bill and replace it with Act.
Purely from a legislative drafting standpoint, I have a problem with the use of the term “sub-article” throughout the Bill in reference to clauses. I have previously written somewhere in a different forum as follows: When referring to provisions of the Constitution, you say article xyz, clause xyz, paragraph xyz- not article xyz, sub article xyz. There are other subtle legislative drafting issues I would have raised but let me end there.
Now to the overview of the Bill.
Overview of the Punguza Mizigo Bill
The amendments in the Punguza Mizigo Bill can be divided into the following twelve categories :
(i) Amendments to provisions on the composition of the National Assembly
(ii) Amendments on the composition, role and quorum of the Senate
(iii) Amendments to provisions on the composition of the county assembly
(iv) Amendments to provisions on leadership and integrity and prosecution of “corruption” cases
(v) Amendment to provisions on the electoral system and process
(vi) Amendments to provisions on the vacation of Member of Parliament
(vii) Clean-up provisions
(viii) Amendment to provision on the presidential term
(ix) Amendments to the “deputy governor provisions” and vacancy in the office of governor
(x) Amendments to the public finance provisions
(xi) Amendments to provisions on Auditor-General
(xii) Amendments to provision on commissions and independent offices
Let us now delve into the categories.
(i) Amendments to provisions on the composition of the National Assembly
Currently, Article 97 of the Constitution provides for a total number of 349 Members. The Bill will reduce this number to 100 Members.
Clause 11 of the Bill amends the composition of Members in the National Assembly. It amends article 97 of the Constitution in order to reduce the number of Members in different ways:
One, by reducing the Members from 290 (the ones who are each elected by the registered voters of single member constituencies) to 94 “consisting of one man and one woman from each of 47 constituencies”.
Two, the 47 “Women Representatives” have been done away (or looked at differently, they have been provided for in the “one man and one woman from each of the 47 constituencies” proposal).
Three, the Bill has done away with the twelve members nominated by parliamentary political parties according to their proportion of members of the National Assembly in accordance with Article 90, to represent special interests including the youth, persons with disabilities and workers. Instead, it proposes the following: six members nominated from special interest groups taking into account the gender balance of one man and one woman in each of the categories under Article 100.
This is how how it looks visually:
97. Membership of the National Assembly
(1) The National Assembly consists of—
(a)two hundred and ninety membersninety-four members consisting of one man and one woman from each of the 47 constituencies, each elected by the registered voters of single member constituencies;(b)
forty-seven women, each elected by the registered voters of the counties, each county constituting a single member constituency;six members nominated from special interest groups taking into account the gender balance of one man and one woman in each of the categories under Article 100;
(c) twelve members nominated by parliamentary political parties according to their proportion of members of the National Assembly in accordance with Article 90, to represent special interests including the youth, persons with disabilities and workers; and(d) the Speaker, who is an ex officio member.
(2) Nothing in this Article shall be construed as excluding any person from contesting an election under clause (1)(a).
In tandem with the amendment to reduce the number of Members in the National Assembly, clauses 7 and 8 of the Bill seeks to align articles 88 and 89 to amendments to article 97. One of the amendments to clause 89 provides that, “For purposes of Parliamentary elections to the Senate and the National Assembly, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, shall use each of the 47 Counties as a single constituency unit”. Thus, the Bill seeks to delete references to “constituencies”.
(ii) Amendments on the composition, role and quorum of the Senate
Amendments on the composition of the Senate
The Bill seeks to reduce the number of Senators from the current 67 to 47. This is how its clause 12 that amends article 98 of the Constitution appears visually:
98. Membership of the Senate
(1) The Senate consists of—
(a) forty-seven members each elected by the registered voters of the counties, each county constituting a single member constituency;
(b) sixteen women members who shall be nominated by political parties according to their proportion of members of the Senate elected under clause (a) in accordance with Article 90;
(c) two members, being one man and one woman, representing the youth;
(d) two members, being one man and one woman, representing persons with disabilities; and
(e) the Speaker, who shall be an ex officio member.
(2) The members referred to in clause (1)(c) and (d) shall be elected in accordance with Article 90.
(3) Nothing in this Article shall be construed as excluding any person from contesting an election under clause (1)(a).
Amendments on the role of the Senate
First, a quick one. There is an amendment to get rid of the concept “delegations” in Senate.Clauses 16 and 27 of the Bill seek to accomplish this by amending articles 115 and 188 of the Constitution.
Secondly, clause 21 of the Bill seeks to amend article 146 of the Constitution (on vacancy in the office of the President). Article 146(2) (b) provides that “if the office of Deputy President is vacant, or the Deputy President is unable to assume the office of President, the Speaker of the National Assembly shall act as President and an election to the office of President shall be held within sixty days after the vacancy arose in the office of President.” The Punguza Mizigo amendment seeks to change this to the Speaker of the Senate acting as President if the Office of the Deputy President is vacant.
Thirdly, clause 9 of the Bill seeks to amend article 93 of the Constitution to provide that the Senate shall be the Upper House with veto power.
Fourth, clause 10 of the Bill seeks to amend article 96 of the Constitution to provide for additional roles for the Senate. It provides that Senate shall review decisions of the National Assembly where it has established that such decisions contravene the Constitution or goes against public interest. It also provides for the Senate to amend or veto a special Bill passed by the National Assembly as long as it is by a resolution supported by at least two-thirds of the members of the Senate. A special Bill is one that relates to the election of members of a county assembly or a county executive or is the annual County Allocation of Revenue Bill. The amendment is as follows:
10. Article 96 of the Constitution is amended by inserting the following new sub-articles immediately after sub-article 4-
(5) On its own motion or upon receiving a petition from any person, the Senate shall within twenty-one days consider and review decisions of the National Assembly and upon establishing that such decisions contravene this Constitution or goes against public interest, the Senate shall veto such decisions pursuant to Article 93(3).
(6) The Senate may amend or veto a special Bill that has been passed by the National Assembly only by a resolution supported by at least two-thirds of the members of the Senate.
(7) If a resolution in the Senate to amend or veto a special Bill fails to pass, the Speaker of the Senate shall within seven days of passing of the resolution, refer the Bill in the format adopted by the National Assembly, to the president for assent.
Amendments on the Senate quorum
Clause 17 provides for the amendment of article 121 of the Constitution to vary the quorum requirement for the Senate from the current 15 to 24. With the 47 Senators proposed for the Senate membership, the quorum will be the majority of the Senators. This will be steep and its practicability needs further interrogation. But more on this if I do another post on this subject.
(iii) Amendments to provisions on the composition of the county assembly
Clause 23 of the Bill seeks to do away with the special seats and marginalised groups representation in the county assembly. It seeks to retain the elected members at the wards. The visual representation is below.
177. Membership of county assembly
(1) A county assembly consists of—
(a) members elected by the registered voters of the wards, each ward constituting a single member constituency, on the same day as a general election of Members of Parliament, being the second Tuesday in August, in every fifth year;
(b) the number of special seat members necessary to ensure that no more than two-thirds of the membership of the assembly are of the same gender;
(c) the number of members of marginalised groups, including persons with disabilities and the youth, prescribed by an Act of Parliament; and
(d) the Speaker, who is an ex officio member.
(2) The members contemplated in clause (1)(b) and (c) shall, in each case, be nominated by political parties in proportion to the seats received in that election in that county by each political party under paragraph (a) in accordance with Article 90.
(3) The filling of special seats under clause (1)(b) shall be determined after declaration of elected members from each ward.
(4) A county assembly is elected for a term of five years.
(iv) Amendments to provisions on leadership and integrity and prosecution of “corruption” cases
The Bill starts aplomb in clause 2 by seeking to amend article 73 of the Constitution. Article 73 lays out the the guiding principles of leadership and integrity. I cannot paraphrase what the amendment provides, so here it is:
2. Article 73 of the Constitution is amended by inserting the following new sub-articles immediately after sub-article 2 –
(3) The recommendations of past and present public inquiry and audit reports shall automatically be adopted to bar all adversely mentioned individuals from seeking and holding any public or state office.
(4) An accounting officer or state officer whose department is cited in the annual Auditor-General report having not accounted public money or fails to prove value for money, shall be required to immediately vacate office.
Clause 3 seeks to amends article 79 by inserting a new article 79A. It proposes that “corruption cases” should be tried within 30 days and appeals be concluded within 21 days. It also proposes a life sentence for persons convicted and found guilty of corruption or theft of public resources. It lastly seeks to bar presidential pardon or amnesty for persons found guilty of corruption or theft of public resources. The amendment provides as follows-
79A. (1) A Corruption or theft of public resources case shall be tried within thirty days of arraignment before a court of competent jurisdiction and an appeal be concluded within twenty-one days.
(2) A person convicted and found guilty of corruption or theft of public resources or money shall serve a life sentence.
(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 133, no presidential pardon or amnesty shall be applicable for those found guilty of corruption or theft of public resources”
Clause 22 of the Bill seeks to amend article 157 of the Constitution (on the Director of Public Prosecution) to provide for the Director of Public Prosecutions to use financial audit findings and forensic reports from the Auditor-General as the “first piece of evidence” in all theft of public resources cases and in no value for money cases, among others. The clause reads as follows-
22. Article 157 of the Constitution is amended by inserting the following new sub-article immediately after sub-article 10-
(10A) The Director of Public Prosecutions shall-
(a) use both general financial audit findings and forensic reports from the Auditor- General as the first piece of evidence in all theft of public resources cases and in no value for money cases;
(b) prosecute all public and state officers together with their private sector accomplices who are responsible for all adverse audit findings within sixty days of audit completion;
(c) write to all officers responsible for adverse audit findings demanding that they leave office within thirty days in compliance with Chapter 6 on receiving audit and forensic audit reports; and
(d) publish in a public website and widely circulated media the action taken on each single issue raised in the audit and forensic reports within sixty days of receiving the reports.
(v) Amendment to provisions on the electoral system and process
Part of this category has been covered in the first category on the proposed amendments to the composition of the National Assembly. The second part is on the proposed amendment to article 89 of the Constitution. Clause 7 of the Bill provides for the amendment to article 89 of the Constitution (on the delimitation of electoral units). Apart from deleting the word constituencies, the effect of the amendments would be to provide for review of boundaries of wards, and not constituencies, as it is currently.
(vi) Amendments to provisions on the vacation of Member of Parliament
Clause 14 of the Bill provides clarity on the procedure when a vacancy occurs in the office of a Member of the National Assembly. It provides as follows-
14. Article 101 of the Constitution is amended by deleting sub-article (2) and substituting therefor the following new sub-article-
(2) Whenever a vacancy occurs in the office of a member of the National Assembly under Article 97 (1) (b), the Speaker of the National Assembly shall, within twenty-one days of the occurrence of the vacancy, give notice in writing of the vacancy to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission which shall in turn write to the respective nominating statutory bodies.
(vii) Clean-up provisions
Part of clause 16 of the Bill seeks to correct the misspelled word “amendeds”. The amendment seeks to delete the letter “s” so that the word will read “amended”. But not quite. Here’s why. Article 115(3) provides that “If Parliament amendeds the Bill accommodating the President’s reservations,…” The online version on the Kenya Law website has the correct spelling. But the reason is that the word is not amended as the Punguza Mizigo Bill seeks to lead us to but amends because any legislative drafter knows that the law is always speaking and that the present tense is our Holy Grail, of course with exceptions. Also, clause (2) that comes immediately before our clause (3) starts with the words “If the President refers…”.
(viii) Amendment to provision on the presidential term
Clause 20 of the Bill seeks to amend Article 142 of the Constitution to provide that a person shall hold office as President for a single seven-year term. The resultant effect of this is to article 136 of the Constitution where its amendment proposes that the election of the President shall be held on the second Tuesday in August, in every seventh year.
(ix) Amendments to the “deputy governor provisions” and vacancy in the office of governor
This category has two sub-categories: “deputy governor provisions”and vacancy in the office of governor. These are dealt separately.
“Deputy governor provisions”
Clause 24 of the Bill seeks to amend 179 of the Constitution (on county executive committee). It seeks to remove the deputy county governor from the composition of the county executive committee. It also seeks to provide that the county governor shall be the Chief Executive of the County. Article 179(5) of the Constitution provides that when the county governor is absent, the deputy county governor shall act as the county governor. The Bill proposes to delete this provision.
Clause 25 of the Bill seeks to amend article 180 of the Constitution. Here’s the visual representation:
180. Election of county governor and deputy county governor
(1) The county governor shall be directly elected by the voters registered in the county, on the same day as a general election of Members of Parliament, being the second Tuesday in August, in every fifth year.
(2) To be eligible for election as county governor, a person must be eligible for election as a member of the county assembly.
(3) If only one candidate for county governor is nominated, that candidate shall be declared elected.
(4) If two or more candidates are nominated, an election shall be held in the county and the candidate who receives the greatest number of votes shall be declared elected.
(5) Each candidate for election as county governor shall nominate a person who is qualified for nomination for election as county governor as a candidate for deputy governor.
(6) The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission shall not conduct a separate election for the deputy governor but shall declare the candidate nominated by the person who is elected county governor to have been elected as the deputy governor.
(7) A person shall not hold office—
(a) as a county governor for more than two terms; or
(b) as a deputy county governor for more than two terms.
(7A) The Governor shall nominate one person from among the duly vetted, approved and appointed County Executive Officers, to be the Governor’s Principal Assistant for purposes of administration in the county.
(8) For the purposes of clause (7), a person who has assumed the office of county governor shall be deemed to have served a full term, subject only to Article 182 (3)(b).
Vacancy in the office of governor
Clause 26 of the Bill seeks to amend article 182 of the Constitution (on vacancy in the office of county governor). Here’s the visual representation:
182. Vacancy in the office of county governor
(1) The office of the county governor shall become vacant if the holder of the office—
(a) dies;
(b) resigns, in writing, addressed to the speaker of the county assembly;
(c) ceases to be eligible to be elected county governor under Article 180(2);
(d) is convicted of an offence punishable by imprisonment for at least twelve months; or
(e) is removed from office under this Constitution.
(2) If a vacancy occurs in the office of county governor, the deputy county governor shall assume office as county governor for the remainder of the term of the county governor.
(3) If a person assumes office as county governor under clause (2), the person shall be deemed for the purposes of Article 180(7)—
(a) to have served a full term as county governor if, at the date on which the person assumed office, more than two and a half years remain before the date of the next regularly scheduled election under Article
180(1); or
(b) not to have served a term of office as county governor, in any other case.
(4) If a vacancy occurs in the office of county governor and that of deputy county governor, or if the deputy county governor is unable to act, the speaker of the county assembly shall act as county governor.
(5) If a vacancy occurs in the circumstances contemplated by clause (4), an election to the office of county governor shall be held within sixty days after the speaker assumes the office of county governor.
(5A) If a vacancy occurs in the office of a governor, a fresh election shall be conducted pursuant to provisions of sub-article (5).
(6) A person who assumes the office of county governor under this Article shall, unless otherwise removed from office under this Constitution, hold office until the newly elected county governor assumes office following the next election held under Article 180(1).
(x) Amendments to the public finance provisions
Clause 28 of the Bill seeks to amend article 201 of the Constitution to regulate Parliament’s budget and expenditure. It provides as follows-
28. Article 201 of the Constitution is amended by inserting the following new paragraphs immediately after paragraphs (e) –
(e) the national budget of Parliament shall not be more than point three five percent of the most recent audited accounts revenue approved by the National Assembly as read together with Article 203 (3).
(f) Not more than twenty percent of parliament’s total annual budget shall be expended on salaries and allowances to members of Parliament.
(g) The highest paid public servant or state officer shall be paid a salary and allowances not exceeding fifty times that of the lowest paid public servant or state officer.
Clause 29 seeks to amend article 203 of the Constitution and the notable amendment is to article 203(2). It increases the equitable share of revenue raised nationally that is allocated to county governments from not less than 15% to not less than 35%. This can be represented visually as follows-
203 (2) For every financial year, the equitable share of the revenue raised nationally that is allocated to county governments shall be not less than fifteen thirty-five per cent of all revenue collected by the national government.
The amendment also proposes to insert the following new clause immediately after clause 4-
(4)To attain optimal development and to take services to the peoples’ doorsteps, counties shall adopt and use the Ward as the primary unit of accelerated development.
There are a few amendments to provision on Equalisation Fund. Clause 30, seeking to amend article 204 of the Constitution, has the following amendments:
204. Equalisation Fund
(1) There is established an Equalisation Fund into which shall be paid one half per cent of all the revenue collected by the national government each year calculated on the basis of the most recent audited accounts of revenue received,
as approved by the National Assembly.
(2) The national government shall use the Equalisation Fund only to provide basic services at ward level including water, roads, health facilities and electricity to marginalised areas to the extent necessary to bring the quality of those services in those areas to the level generally enjoyed by the rest of the nation, so far as possible.
(3) The national governmentmayshall use the Equalisation Fund—
(a) only to the extent that the expenditure of those funds has been approved in an Appropriation Bill enacted by Parliament; and(b) either directly, or indirectly through conditional grants to counties in which marginalised communities exist.
(4) The Commission on Revenue Allocation shall be consulted and its recommendations considered before Parliament passes any Bill appropriating money out of the Equalisation Fund.
(5) Any unexpended money in the Equalisation Fund at the end of a particular financial year shall remain in that Fund for use in accordance with clauses (2) and (3) during any subsequent financial year.
(6) This Article lapses twenty years after the effective date, subject to clause (7).
(7) Parliament may enact legislation suspending the effect of clause (6) for a further fixed period of years, subject to clause (8).
(8) Legislation under clause (7) shall be supported by more than half of all the members of the National Assembly, and more than half of all thecounty delegations inmembers of the Senate.
(9) Money shall not be withdrawn from the Equalisation Fund unless the Controller of Budget has approved the withdrawal.
(xi) Amendments to provisions on Auditor-General
Clause 31 of the Bill seeks to amend article 229 of the Constitution (on the Auditor-General). It proposes to establish a forensic accounting department in the office of the Auditor-General and providing an obligation to the Auditor-General to forward the audit and forensic report to the Office of Director of Public Prosecutions and the Director of Criminal Investigations within 5 days of completion of the audit. The amendment reads as follows-
31. Article 229 of the Constitution is amended by inserting the following new sub-articles immediately after sub-article (8)-
(9) There is established a forensic accounting department in the office of the Auditor-General to enhance capacity to produce credible evidence for purposes of prosecuting theft or failure to account for public resources including but not limited to money expended by government departments, as well as by other state organs.
(10) The Auditor-General shall forward the audit and forensic report to the Office of Director of Public Prosecutions and the Director of Criminal Investigations within five days of completion of the audit.
xii) Amendments to provision on commissions and independent offices
Clause 32 of the Bill seeks to amend article 250 of the Constitution (on the composition, appointment and terms of office of members of Commissions and holders of independent offices). The amendments are as follows:
♣ It proposes that membership of Commissions or independent offices should be 3-5 members. Currently, it is 3-9 members.
♣ It proposes that a Member of a commission shall serve on a part-time basis, unlike currently where clause 5 uses discretionary language where a member of a commission may serve on a part-time basis or a full-time basis. The current provision indicates that “a Member of a commission may serve on a part-time basis”.
♣ It provides that a member of a commission shall draw a sitting allowance as may be set by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.
♣ It deletes clause 7 which provides that “the remuneration and benefits payable to or in respect of a commissioner or the holder of an independent office shall be a charge on the Consolidated Fund.”
Conclusion
The Punguza Mizigo (Constitution of Kenya Amendment) Bill 2019 has already sparked a national conversation on a wide array of issues. In this post, I was concerned on laying out what the Bill is about. In the next post on the Bill, I will attempt to interrogate the amendments.
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ayes & nays