By ALEX  NDEGWA

Prime Minister Raila Odinga has accused Attorney General Githu Muigai of secretly attempting to have Parliament pass a controversial Bill without his knowledge.

Raila admonished Prof Muigai for reintroducing the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendment) Bill in the House on Thursday — a week after the AG withdrew it to facilitate further consultations following objections by the PM.

The PM told the AG in a terse letter dated yesterday that he had asked Speaker Kenneth Marende — who would rule on the dispute on Tuesday — not to allow passage of unconstitutional laws.

“It has this morning come to my attention that in yesterday’s (Thursday) session of Parliament, you moved the said Bill before the House and attempted to have it passed by the National Assembly,” read the letter a copy of which The Standard On Saturday obtained.

And it continued: “This is despite your official confirmation to me that the Bill stood withdrawn. It cannot be right that a formal and official undertaking is made to the PM by the Principal Legal Adviser to the Government and the same is negated in the surreptitious manner as has been done in this case.”

 “By a copy of this letter, I am also asking the Speaker of the National Assembly to uphold the Constitution and not allow unconstitutional laws to be debated and passed by the legislature,” said the PM in the letter.

The letter is also copied to Mrs Sarah Serem, the chairperson of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission. The PM reiterated his concerns over the proposed amendment to the National Assembly (Remuneration) Act to backdate allowances for select MPs to July 1, 2003.

Another contentious proposal seeks to review the National Cohesion and Integration Act so the President can re-appoint commissioners by gazetting the appointments.

On Thursday, Marende had sanctioned debate on the Bill even as he indicated he would rule on the legal challenges on Tuesday prior to a vote.

The Speaker, however, declined to rule the Bill is unconstitutional as requested on Thursday evening by Gwasi MP John Mbadi.

After his petition was overruled, Mbadi raised alarm over lack of quorum, prompting the House to adjourn debate prematurely.