Parliament Postpones Voting on Gender Bill

The National Assembly has postponed voting on the Gender Bill after the MPs failed to raise the numbers necessary to pass it.

Following an application by Majority Leader Aden Duale, Speaker Justin Muturi directed that the bill is deferred until February 2019 when voting is expected to be carried out.

Speaker Muturi cautioned the legislators that they not only needed 233 members present in the Chamber, but more importantly in support of the Bill for it to pass.

Following a request by Homa Bay Woman Representative Gladys Wanga, the Speaker noted that there were 212 members at the beginning of the debate.

The number of members in the chambers later dropped to 207 which is way below the required quorum to pass the Bill.

The application to shelve the Gender Bill was supported by a number of leaders including the Minority Leader John Mbadi.

Muturi noted that the House leadership would convene on December 4, 2018, to deliberate on when to introduce the bill back.

ODM leader Raila Odinga and his Wiper counterpart Kalonzo Musyoka were present in Parliament in support of the Gender Bill.

Their attendance highlighted the seriousness of the matter which is among the 48 mandatory laws that the parliament was required to pass according to the Constitution.

Addressing the media, Mbadi had earlier on stated, "This matter is so fundamental and so crucial, Kenyans agreed in 2010 to have gender parity. We’ve just delayed for 8yrs."

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto have in the past equally expressed their full support for the Gender Bill.

Here is the video:

 

WATCH LIVE: Parliament Voting on The 2/3 Gender Rule, Raila Odinga is in Attendance

WATCH LIVE: Parliament Voting on The 2/3 Gender Rule, Raila Odinga is in Attendance

Posted by Kenyans.co.ke on Wednesday, November 28, 2018