By Mugambi Nandi
Parliament recently squeezed a number of pressing matters of national importance into its busy schedule. Those remotely familiar with the subject will say the business of making laws in between sneaking in and out of Parliamentary Committees requires a high degree of dexterity and organisation. For that reason, nothing gets into the parliamentary agenda unless it ranks high in priority on the national agenda.
Kenyans have been yearning for a new law on marriage since independence and would have readily staged a protest had there been any further delay in addressing the matter.
Our representatives made monumental sacrifices in debating and passing that law, complete with licentious provisions on polygamy.
They were so thorough in their scrutiny of the draft law that they carefully and conscientiously sealed all loopholes through any mischievously ‘abnormal’ marriages may be permitted.
There was a spirited attempt to provide a large window through which men professing the Islamic faith could legally marry girls who have not attained the age of eighteen. It would be flippant to speculate that this had anything to do with the promise of seventy-two virgins for those who take up martyrdom.
The legislators also expended a considerable time discussing the issue of who may or may not fly the national flag on their cars, whether as a show of patriotism or position. The importance of this issue cannot be overemphasised.
What with Governors and others of their ilk using the flag for ostentation rather than for the noble purpose of showing patriotism!
If there had been enough time, a profound argument would have been made about the savings the country would make from this austerity measure. We are certain that there was no malice aforethought in passing the much needed law to control ‘the flag menace’. Besides, the new law had nothing to do with putting Governors in their place. Our representatives are way above such triviality.
Having disposed of the above important matters, our representatives turned to the welfare of certain high ranking politicians who, through no fault of their own, lost in the last General Election and those who might in future suffer the same fate.
We are talking about generous retirement packages for politicians who have not quite retired but are out of a job through a conspiracy between their opponents, the voter and misfortune. The notion that when a politician wins an election he is aware that he occupies the office for a finite term (unless re-elected), must be dismissed with the contempt it deserves.
Senior politicians must have a guaranteed future income if we are so thankless as to hurl them out of office at the end of their term. After all, not everyone can be appointed ambassador or chairman of a state corporation.
Despite the exhaustion of dealing with the above weighty issues, the MPs still inquired into another matter of great national and continental importance.
Borrowing from Uganda, that paragon of excellence and a model of best practice in matters of morality, decency and African culture, they helpfully demanded and received a comprehensive report on homosexuality in Kenya.
Finally, they endured an address on the State of the Nation, during which there was much yawning and some snoozing. (As an aside, we have it on the authority of science that yawning is contagious, so you really cannot blame the afflicted).
After such a productive week, it would be unfair to say the legislators did not earn their keep and their long weekend, which usually begins on Thursday and ends on Tuesday afternoon.
