- Ruto wants Cabinet Secretaries to appear in the Chambers to outline executive agenda.
- Currently, the Standing Orders bars 'strangers' from the Chambers.
Image: WILLIAM RUTO / FACEBOOK
The National Assembly will soon start the process of amending the Standing Orders to allow Cabinet Secretaries access the Chamber.
President William Ruto had asked Parliament to review its laws to open up the House for his CSs to respond to questions by MPs and outline the government agenda.
The National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula confirmed on Tuesday that the House has started reviewing the Standing Orders to implement Ruto's proposal.
“I totally agree with @WilliamsRuto proposal that all Cabinet Secretaries appear before the @NAssemblyKE, and we are working on amending the standing orders to accommodate that,” Wetangula Twitted.
Standing Orders are the rules and regulations that govern the conduct of House businesses and provides for establishment of various offices and their mandates.
I totally agree with @WilliamsRuto proposal that all Cabinet Secretaries appear before the @NAssemblyKE, and we are working on amending the standing orders to accommodate that. pic.twitter.com/4x3EY5x83c
— Rt.Hon.Moses Wetang'ula (@HonWetangula) November 1, 2022
They also provide for the procedure on how proceedings are conducted in the National Assembly and also restricts access to the Chambers to only members of Parliament and Staff.
"No person other than a Member shall be admitted into any part of the Chamber appropriated to the exclusive use of Members of the House while the House or the Committee of the whole House is sitting," reads Section 253(1) of the Standing Orders.
However, paragraph two exempts the Clerk or other officers of Parliament from this provision when discharging their duties in the service of the House.
Amendments to the Standing Orders can been initiated by an individual member or by the House Procedure and Rules Committee.
A member must garner the support of at least 50 other Members to petition the Procedure and House Rules Committee to consider an amendment to the Standing Orders.
Such a request shall contain the text of the proposed amendment and the justification for the proposal as well as the names and signatures of the Members supporting the request.
The Procedure and House Rules Committee shall review the Standing Orders and make a report to the House recommending the amendment of the Standing Orders.
The House will then be called upon to make a resolution.
The Standing Orders can only be reviewed at least once in every term of Parliament.