A radical Bill that could diminish the powers of the Presidency and create a powerful Prime Minister sponsored by an MP from a party affiliated to Jubilee is headed to Parliament.
Tiaty MP Kassait Kamket-elected on a Kanu ticket in his Draft Bill seeks having the president as a Ceremonial Head of State and a symbol of national unity.
If passed, the Prime Minister will be the head of government with the assistance of two deputies.
According to the Star, Kamket’s Bill has backing from a senior Jubilee Party official.
It seeks to abolish the Executive Office of the Deputy President and replace it with the PM’s office. The PM according to the draft bill will be an elected MP and Leader of Government Business.
“As a consequence of the proposed amendment, the President shall retain ceremonial powers as Head of State without any need for the position of Deputy President,” states the Bill in part as quoted by the Star.
The PM will have unrivalled power in running the Executive to a point he has the authority to hire and fire Cabinet Secretaries and ambassadors.
However, the Bill further stipulates that the President will remain the Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Forces.
Further, the Bill proposes a fixed single term of seven years for the President. This also extends to Cabinet Secretaries who will be picked from members of Parliament.
It also changes the criteria of election of a President. It states that the President would be elected in a joint sitting of Parliament convened on the first Thursday of December every seventh year. He must be 50 years and above and must not hold any position in a political party.
“The new Article 138 requires a person to garner the votes of at least two-thirds of all members of Parliament in the first round of voting to stand elected as President. In the event that the first threshold is not met, a candidate may stand elected in the second round of voting if he or she garners the votes of a majority of all the members of Parliament,” states the Bill further.
The Bill could be a charm for the opposition as it seeks to introduce the office of the Official Leader of Opposition who will come fourth after the President, PM and the National Assembly Speaker.
Woman Representative position will be scrapped under the Bill to bring the number of MPs to 302 up from 349.
To achieve the two-third gender principle, the Bill proposes that all 47 county assemblies will elect a Senator, a woman and a man.
“The Senate is to comprise 94 members being one man and one woman elected by members of each county assembly, six members nominated to represent the youth and persons with disabilities and the speaker as an ex officio member.”
Kamket says that he has presented the Bill on a personal capacity without other forces behind. He also notes that it will address secession talks that have gained traction since the bungled August 8 polls.
“This is a Private Member’s Bill and I have brought it as Tiaty MP. I have talked to a number of my colleagues for support.
“I want the parliamentary system back because the presidential system is too restrictive and does not open the democratic space. We want the Executive to be held directly accountable because now it is far removed from Parliament and MPs are speaking to themselves. I want ministers to come from Parliament because, currently, we have foreigners as Cabinet Secretaries.”