Women MCAs made scored big on Tuesday after the Nairobi county assembly approved a 50 per cent female representation in the four-person chairperson’s panel.
The panel membership is now gender-balanced as per the requirement of the Nairobi County Assembly Standing Order 17.
The approval came a day after Chief Justice David Maraga advised President Uhuru Kenyatta to dissolve Parliament for failing to pass the law on two-thirds gender rule as prescribed in the Constitution.
Standing Order 17 requires that the Chairperson’s panel comprise four members respectively referred to as the First, Second, Third and Fourth chairperson who exercise the powers vested in the chairperson of the committees.
Nominated MCAs Emily Oduor and Immapet Kemunto are in the panel alongside Silas Matara and John Kamangu, who are Dandora Two and Ruai representatives respectively.
Oduor is also a member of the assembly’s Finance, Budget and Appropriation Committee.
Kamangu, who resigned as deputy speaker last week, is the first chairperson. He will be in charge of the committee made up all chairpersons of the county assembly committees.
Their names were tabled in the house by deputy majority leader Peter Wanyoike.
After his election as speaker last month, Benson Mutura was required to constitute a new panel after the previous one was disbanded by his predecessor Beatrice Elachi earlier in the year.
The previous panel was made up of Oduor, Matara, Evans Otiso (Mukuru kwa Njenga) and Antony Kimemia (Harambee).
Members of the speaker’s panel lead plenary sessions in the absence of the speaker and his deputy.
Majority leader Abdi Hassan Guyo commended the new panel and asked the members to perform their duties as is expected of them.
“It is a great honour to see that the panel has women who are deserving. The ratio is very good. The National Assembly should come and learn from us how things are done to ensure gender parity,” Kabiro Mbugua (nominated) said.
Deputy minority whip Moses Ogeto asked the new team to work as per the expectations of the county assembly.
- mwaniki fm
