- Kositany said it is wrong for the party leader to gang up with the opposition to push the BBI agenda.
- Mathare's Oluoch said MPs who stand against the President should not be allowed to occupy leadership positions in Parliament.
Jubilee deputy secretary general and Soy MP Caleb Kositany says the ruling party has handed over its roles in Parliament to opposition ODM.
Kositany on Monday censured President Uhuru Kenyatta for allowing ODM to take over leadership positions in key parliamentary committees.
He claimed on Citizen TV that ODM is now calling the shots in the National Assembly.
“It is sad for democracy because the independence of Parliament has been eroded. We have lost it as Jubilee,” he said.
He accused the head of state of intending to push the the Building Bridges Initiative agenda by all means.
According to the staunch ally of Deputy President William Ruto, Jubilee is a failed party.
The Soy MP said, “Fish starts to rot from the head. The issue of BBI is being pushed down our throats. It is not right for our party leader to gang up with the opposition to push the BBI agenda.”
Kositany's criticism of Uhuru came as reports emerged that the DP allies could be disciplined for disrespecting the President.
The MP has been mentioned as among those targeted but he has indicated he is ready to face the disciplinary committee and is prepared for any consequences.
Last week, President Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga took control of Parliament when their trusted allies were elected unopposed to lead key National Assembly committees.
At least nine legislators from Nasa got the positions ahead of the tabling of the BBI report in the House.
Ruto's allies were removed from leadership of the committees for opposing the BBI.
Kositany said if the President wanted to push his agenda in the House, he should call a Parliamentary Group meeting and have a discussion with members.
“It has never happened anywhere else before where the ruling party removes its members from leadership positions in committees and hands them to a party that was its competitor in the elections,” he said.
Mathare MP Anthony Oluoch and his Shinyalu counterpart Justus Kizito disagreed with Kositany, saying ODM had not taken away anything from Jubilee.
Oluoch said the Orange party will still play its oversight role even if its members have landed leadership positions in some parliamentary committees.
“Oversight will continue. In fact, it will be more effective from now on. In this Constitution, there is no provision for official opposition,” Oluoch said.
According to the Mathare MP, legislators who stand against the President should not be allowed to occupy leadership positions in Parliament.
“Why give people who stand against you leadership positions in committees? It is the prerogative of the President to rally his troops in Parliament to push his legacy. He, therefore, had to do some realignment. He must put in place people who will push his agenda,” he added.
Kizito, who became the chair of the Parliamentary Broadcasting and Library Committee, said the role of the House would be enhanced with the new leadership.
“We are not keen on grabbing anything from anybody. Our agenda is to enhance the role of Parliament,” he said.
Uasin Gishu Woman Representative Gladys Boss Shollei said the Handshake deal between Uhuru and Raila was conmanship. “When he campaigned, it was on a platform of Jubilee manifesto and people accepted it but after some time, he is going for another agenda,” she said.
Her Homa Bay counterpart Gladys Wanga, a beneficiary of the changes in the National Assembly, thanked Uhuru and Raila for being named the chair of the powerful Finance and National Planning Committee.
- mwaniki fm