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The Gender Taskforce has written to Chief Justice Martha Koome asking her to recommend President William Ruto to dissolve the 13th Parliament for failing to implement the two-thirds gender rule.
The multi-sectoral working group on achieving the two-thirds gender principle hopes that Koum will be able to exercise constitutional powers like his predecessor, David Maraga.
The letter reads: “On September 21, 2020, then Chief Justice Maraga issued a recommendation to the President to dissolve Parliament because Parliament had failed to enact legislation required by the Constitution. The President did not dissolve Parliament and Parliament has never been dissolved.”
“Since September 2020 till date, Parliament has not enacted the necessary legislation. We therefore write to the Chief Justice to call on you to fulfil your obligations under Section 262(7), Section 259(1) (a) (b) and (d), Section 259(3) (a) and (8) and Sections 1, 2 and 3.
The task force, formed by former gender adviser Aisha Jumwa, was tasked with developing and formulating a framework for the implementation of the two-thirds gender principle.
On February 27 this year, the team submitted a report to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Moses Wetangula, proposing to amend the constitution to add 55 special seats.
It also recommended that the 2011 Election Act be amended to provide for the submission of party lists.
“It is noteworthy that the report of the multi-sectoral task force has come at an opportune time. You will recall that last week, the House of Representatives adopted the Nadco report,” Wetangula said.
“On the issue of the two-thirds gender principle, the committee recommends that the panel complete its work and recommend a framework for the implementation of the two-thirds gender principle and submit its report to Parliament for consideration,” Wetangula said after receiving the report.
Daisy Amdany, co-chair of the task force, said it was unfortunate that five months had passed and nothing had happened.
At an editorial meeting hosted by the African Thematic Service on Women and Children, she lamented the report’s languishing status in Parliament.
“The Nadco report influenced the formulation of nine bills and unfortunately, two-thirds of the gender principles were ignored in these bills,” she said.
Amdani said the current situation was similar to the one that forced Malaga to recommend that the former president dissolve parliament.
“We draw your attention to Section 2(4) which provides that any act or omission which is unconstitutional shall be void. Failure to advise the President on the dissolution of Parliament pursuant to Section 261(1), which requires the Chief Justice to advise the President to dissolve Parliament, would constitute an unconstitutional omission,” the letter signed by Amdany, Marylin Kamuru and Elizabeth Kabari reads.
The team said the current litigation does not prohibit the chief justice from recommending that the president dissolve parliament.
Section 261(7) provides that the dissolution of Parliament is a two-part process initiated by the Chief Justice, subject to certain obligations.
“The only situation in which the Supreme Court should not issue a recommendation to the President to dissolve Parliament under Article 262(7) is if Parliament has already enacted the required legislation,” the letter reads.
In its report, the task force recommended adding 55 seats to parliament.
The 53 new seats in the National Assembly will cost Sh2 billion per year, while the two new seats in the Senate will cost Sh115 million per year.
“The government’s daily tax revenue for fiscal year 2023 is $5.19 billion, so the annual amount of adding 55 members to the National Assembly and Senate to make tax revenue constitutional is equivalent to less than one day’s tax revenue in Kenya,” the report said.
Amdani said political parties are the key to achieving two-thirds gender rule.
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