•"In circumstances where institutions have failed as is the case with Parliament currently, the Constitution gives power to citizens to act directly and not through their elected representatives to have their aspirations realized."
• Says there are numerous ramifications to the country and the people of Kenya in dissolving
Image: FILE
ODM leader Raila Odinga has urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to consult widely before making a decision on the CJ's advice to dissolve Parliament over the two-thirds gender rule.
In a statement on Wednesday, Raila wondered how dissolving Parliament would resolve the problem.
Raila who doubles up as AU's Special Envoy for Infrastructure said Maraga's advisory has placed the country and the people of Kenya in a precarious constitutional and political situation that will require careful deliberation before any action is taken.
On Monday, Chief Justice David Maraga advised Uhuru to dissolve Parliament for failing to enact legislation required to implement the two-thirds gender rule.
In an advisory dated September 21, Maraga said he was responding following six petitions seeking his advice on the matter.
"The petitions are based on the ground that despite four court orders compelling Parliament to enact the legislation... Parliament has blatantly failed, refused, or neglected to do so...." Maraga said.
The CJ said it was his constitutional duty to advise Uhuru.
"Let us endure pain if we must..." he said.
But Raila said there are numerous ramifications to the country and the people of Kenya in dissolving one of the arms of Government which if not mitigated sufficiently could have adverse consequences in the life of the nation and its people.
"While we all have different opinions on the desirability or even wisdom of the action proposed, we have all been ushered into circumstances that require a consensus on the way forward failing which we may throw away the baby with the bathwater," Raila said.
Raila said though the country has been thrown into this situation because of failure by Parliament to enact the two-third gender rule as provided for in the Constitution, it remains unclear how the dissolution of Parliament would resolve the problem.
He said in circumstances where institutions have failed as is the case with Parliament currently, the Constitution gives power to citizens to act directly and not through their elected representatives to have their aspirations realized.
"I appeal to the President to consult as widely as possible before taking any action on this matter and ensure that the overall interests of the people are served by any action he finally decides to take," he said.
State House on Monday asked Attorney General Kihara Kariuki to challenge the advisory.
Multiple sources told the Star that the AG will go to court later in the week to seek an interpretation to Maraga's advisory.
"The President may ignore the advice. However, the government has decided to seek an interpretation on the way forward from the courts," a Cabinet Secretary who sought anonymity said.
However, the government suing would cause another showdown with the Judiciary, given the frosty relationship between the two arms of government.
So far, Parliamentary Service Commission has moved to court to challenge the advisory as pressure mounts on President Uhuru Kenyatta to dissolve Parliament.
PSC chair Justin Muturi, who is also the speaker of the National Assembly, said the advisory over the failure of Parliament to effect the two-thirds gender rule is ill-advised, premature and unconstitutional.
"The commission regrets that the Chief Justice appears to be willing, even eager, to plunge the country into a constitutional crisis without exercising the wisdom and circumspection that is expected of the high office he holds," he said.
Meantime, the Centre for Multi-Party Democracy, the Institute for Social Accountability and female MPs urged the President to heed to the advice of the Chief Justice.
CMD executive director Frankline Mukwanja said the law does not give the Chief Justice or the President leeway on when and how to implement the constitutional provision on the two-thirds gender principle.
It requires that no more than two-thirds of any elected or appointed public body shall be of the same gender.
“Equality is about 50:50 and the two-thirds gender principle is the bare minimum set by the Constitution,” he explained.