Keep pressure on MPs over amendments

Even as we congratulate President Kibaki for rejecting the two amendments mischievously passed last week to Elections and Political Parties Act we must appreciate the reversal is still incomplete.

That is why even as we celebrate the decision by the President to return the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2012 back to Parliament, we must continue to bear pressure on MPs to block the changes given how unpopular and retrogressive they have turned out to be to the public.

Indeed, even though the decision to amend the Parties Act to allow for party hopping till election day was popular among MPs for obvious reasons, it is now clear that it was an assault in the effort by Kenyans to instill discipline in parties because they are the cornerstones of democracy.

Singular honour

That is why the civil society rushed to court, the media expressed outrage, and sober and non-selfish politicians condemned the action by MPs, not so much on barring those without degrees from running, but the mere fact that we allowed MPs to pass legislation, which would have seen them treat their parties with the singular honour they reserve for their spit.

Yes, MPs have rightly argued that the changes were not to the Constitution, but you would wish they hopefully also considered what effect it would have for the set of laws that govern us, especially through how their amendments violated the letter and spirit of the Constitution Kenyans overwhelmingly voted for in the 2010 referendum.

Also, the MPs must be well aware that Kenyans know for sure that some of them never even read the amendments, but nonetheless voted for them at night, only to wake up and reverse some of the changes the following morning.

What this means to the ordinary Kenyans is that the MPs do not deploy their intellectual energy to debate. Some could just be voting machines at the disposal of some inter-party and intra-party interests.

One could also argue that the reason the MPs first voted to block non-degree holders from running for parliamentary, Senate and governor seat, then changed mind the following morning, was merely informed by the fact that it could mean a lower salary for them, when the Salaries and Remuneration Commission finally grades earners of public funds according to academic and professional criteria.

This, sadly, even if the MPs disagree, is how the members of what would otherwise want to pass itself along as an august House, full of venerable and patriotic men and women, have projected themselves to ordinary Kenyans.

Of course, there are other changes the MPs made, including opening up the presidential race for every Dick, Tom and Harry, by yanking the door open for presidential election losers to be nominated to Parliament.

Subterfuge

This action alone flies in the face of the other change the MPs upheld, which is to block presidential candidates from running for any other elective post.

The reason they waived one and upheld the other of course is to cunningly thin out the field and tilt it in their favour at the constituencies, counties by locking out presidential candidates. The MPs should have anticipated that Kenyans would see through their veil of subterfuge, pretence, lies, and mischief.

If there is any lesson the MPs have learnt it is that even the Presidency itself has freed itself of the dictatorial, boisterous and selfish streak of the past, which was punctuated by an incestuous conspiracy with Parliament against the people. By rejecting the changes the President, who argued on the basis of the court cases steeped against the changes MPs made, absolved himself of blame and redeemed the honour and dignity of the Executive.

In so doing, the President gave Parliament the chance to redeem itself, by either passing his own recommendations by a simple majority, or vetoing them through the more gargantuan two-thirds majority process.

As one MP argued during the debate this is not about numbers in the House and the reign of the selfish interests by MPs, but faithfulness to the Constitution, and the higher standards it has set for management of public affairs.

Parliament, now that it knows how eerily it was out of tune with the political throb of the nation, must realign itself with public interest.

It’s the only way to redeem its honour and regain the confidence of Kenyans. History, the harsh and vicious arbiter, is watching each of the MPs.