CALENDAR CHANGE

2021 campaigns: Let's clear Senate bills now, Mutula Jr tells Lusaka

Mutula says it will be difficult to have the senators attend sittings in 2021 due to campaigns.

In Summary

• The legislators on Tuesday said there are a lot of bills that have not been adopted by the House yet time is running out.

• The Senators raised the concerns during an amendment motion to alter the Senate calendar to allow three sittings in a week.

The Senate during a session
The Senate during a session
Image: FILE

Senators have challenged Speaker Ken Lusaka to lead the House and clear all the pending bills while they still have time.

The legislators on Tuesday said there are a lot of bills that have not been adopted by the House yet time is running out.

Makueni Senator Mutula Kilonza Junior said if measures are not put in place to have Senate deliver on its mandate, it will be difficult to have the senators attend sittings in 2021 due to early campaigns.

 
 
 

"Mr Speaker we have a lot of work before us with many bills yet to be adopted. Reggae is back and it will be hard to get these members next year because they will be busy in campaigns,"  Mutula said.

The Makueni Senator said since there has been good cooperation between the House leadership and the Executive, the speaker should utilise that opportunity and get the house back to business.

"Mr Speaker we are not sure if you will be sitting there next time. We have seen photos of the House leadership at State House which is an indication that there is good cooperation. Therefore Mr speaker we must clear all the pending bills and this is your time to get many bills assented by the President as possible,"  he said.

The Senators raised the concerns during an amendment motion to alter the Senate calendar to allow three sittings in a week.

Currently, the Senate had altered the calendar allowing them to have sittings only on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

However many felt that two days in a week is not sufficient for them to execute their mandate.

The amendment motion was moved by Wajir Senator Abdulahi Ali.

 
 
 

Mutula said the speaker should use the current goodwill between the House leadership and Executive as a bridge to push the Senate's agenda.

His sentiments were echoed by Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala who said meeting two days in a week is a disservice to the House.

"Mr Speaker if we have allowed political gatherings to happen, we should resume house sittings and thus we should resume our meetings three times a week," Malala said.

This comes even as the Senate heads to Court on Wednesday for submissions on the consent of the revenue allocation and the money bills between the National Assembly and the Senate.

WATCH: The latest videos from the Star