Senators allied to the Azimio la Umoja coalition on Wednesday, June 21, walked out of the chambers after Trade Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria appeared before the house to answer questions from legislators regarding different issues in his ministry.
During the Senate proceedings, the opposition senators were dissatisfied with Senate Speaker Amason Kingi's decision to permit Kuria to respond only to preset questions. They argued that this decision prevented them from interrogating Kuria about the Ksh6 billion edible oil scandal and his derogatory remarks aimed at Nation Media Group (NMG), which observers agreed posed a threat to media freedom.
According to the senators, the house lacked quorum contrary to Standing Order number 41. As a result, they argued, the house lacked the capacity to conduct any business.
Kingi was accused of prohibiting the opposition from deviating from preset questions after Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna filed a censure motion against the CS.
"I have filed a motion at the Senate to discuss Moses Kuria’s conduct because the constitution, which guarantees media freedom, must be upheld. A person in such a capacity should not be allowed to make such remarks which can’t be made even before children," Sifuna stated.
Speaker Kingi, however, ruled that the Senate proceedings would proceed as scheduled even as the opposition senators continued to protest against the predetermined line of questioning.
"Having not seen the proposed motion by Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, it cannot be a subject of discussion on the floor of the house today.
"Even assuming that the proposed motion was submitted to the Office of the Speaker, it may have not been admissible. So what we are doing is anticipating debates, contrary to Standing Order 99," Kingi stated.
Minutes after issuing the directive, the Azimio team led by Sifuna walked out while lashing out at the Speaker.
Nonetheless, the session continued with Kuria detailing how the Kenya National Trading Corporation (KNTC) approves applications filed by companies seeking to import goods.
The CS denied the allegations that The Kenya National Trading Corporation (KNTC) engaged in single-sourcing of edible oil stating that 22 suppliers were approved to import fertilizers, rice, beans, and cooking oil. He further emphasized that KNTC followed a legally outlined procedure to screen and approve companies for importing these goods.
Kuria claimed that a cartel of edible oil importers was holding the government to ransom, seeking to prohibit it from ensuring a stable supply of the commodity and protecting consumers from exploitation.
"There is no distinction in how we treat edible oil, as far as procurement is concerned. We did not single-source as claimed, but we pre-qualified suppliers as guided by the framework agreed upon with Public Procurement Authority (PPRA).
"Suppose we went out and called for a public tendering, and the lowest bidder is above market rates; we would be obligated to pay. That is why we had to present our case to Public Procurement Authority to agree on a new framework as we should not be trading as a government," Kuria expounded.
