BBI: Give all 70 extra seats in Parliament to women, says Ngilu
Kitui Governor Charity Ngilu with other women leaders address the press on October 23, 2020 at a Nairobi hotel on the BBI process. She says the report has fallen short of tackling gender disparity gap in political leadership.
What you need to know:
- BBI report has fallen short of tackling gender disparity gap in political leadership, reckons Kitui governor Charity Ngilu.
- Amendments introduce positions of the prime minister and two deputy prime ministers, all of whom shall be appointed by the President, but fail to specify whether the opposite gender will be considered or not.
- Governor wants a review of the recommendation to provide for an exclusive allocation of all the 70 political party seats to women.
The proposed constitutional amendments contained in the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report have fallen short of tackling gender disparity gap in political leadership, reckons Kitui governor Charity Ngilu.
Ms Ngilu who spoke during the launch of the BBI report on October 26, 2020 noted lack of an explicit mechanism to realise the two-thirds gender principle both in the National Assembly and the expanded Executive.
“The issue of two-thirds has not been addressed in the National Assembly in this proposed Constitution,” she said.
The amendments introduce positions of the prime minister and two deputy prime ministers, all of whom shall be appointed by the President.
Opposite gender
They, however, fail to specify on whether the opposite gender will be considered or not.
The Prime Minister’s position is crucial in determining establishment and passing of gender-sensitive laws as he or she will be the government’s overseer of the legislative agenda in the National Assembly.
In her speech during the launch, Ms Ngilu was categorical that women must be included in the proposed power structure.
“It is said and it must be said all the time where two or three are gathered to make policy decisions there is got be gender rule applied,” she said.
Party lists
While the BBI team proposes that each of the 47 counties elect two senators- a man and a woman, they leave a vacuum on how fairness will be applied in topping up the seats in the National Assembly.
The report recommends a 360-member house, out of which 290 MPs will be elected and 70 topped up from the political party lists.
The amendment warrants political parties the power to distribute the seats among the women, youth and people with disabilities.
Ms Ngilu however, preferred a review of the recommendation to provide for an exclusive allocation of all the 70 seats to women.
“The 70 positions that would be given to the National Assembly, put it there that they will all go to women. All of them without exception,” she said.
Six petitions
Meanwhile, the verdict on whether the President should adhere to Chief Justice’s advisory on dissolving Parliament for failure to enact law on two-thirds gender principle lies in the hands of a five-judge bench.
The bench will hear at least six petitions, with pleas in either support or against the advisory, and make a ruling.
The petitions have been filed by two citizens- Leina Konchella and Mohsen Abdul Munasar, National Assembly, Senate, Attorney General, Thirdway Alliance party, Mathare MP Anthony Tom Oluoch and lawyer Adrian Kamotho Njenga.
