ODM’s Eddy Oketch Proposes 6-Year Term Limit For Senators
An ODM senator has proposed radical constitutional amendments to change the terms of elected leaders and abolish nominated positions, potentially sparking yet another public debate.
Migori Senator Eddy Oketch has proposed amendments that would reduce the president’s terms to four years from the current five years and make the deputy president the Senate speaker.
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party has submitted a letter to the Senate opposing a bill that proposes extending the term limits for the president and other elected leaders from five to seven years.#KTNPrime @DoriceAnkey pic.twitter.com/K5XWEHmTSO
— KTN News (@KTNNewsKE) October 28, 2024
The lawmaker also proposes that governors, members of the National Assembly, and members of the county assembly have their terms reduced to four years with a midterm election every two years.
The lawmaker proposes that senators’ terms be extended to six years.
“I propose the reduction of the presidential term to a four-year term to align with that of members of the National Assembly, but elections for president and his or her deputy be done at the end of each fourth year,” Oketch says.
The proposal followed a bill introduced by Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei that sought to extend the terms of all elected leaders from five to seven years.
The Justice and Legal Affairs Committee is considering the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2024.
Oketch’s submission to the committee abolishes women’s representation in the National Assembly and elevates them to the Senate.
In order to comply with the elusive two-thirds gender rule, each county would be represented by two senators.
Sen. Eddy Oketch (Migori) moves a motion to discuss the rising cases of murder in the country, with a particular focus on targeting women and girls. #SenateLive pic.twitter.com/WHid2v1kSp
— Senate of Kenya (@Senate_KE) October 30, 2024
“This is because, with the sunset constitutional clause of women affirmative action, it would be important to maintain the role of women in county representation as a functional one,” he says.
“With the introduction of the functional responsibility of the Deputy President as the president of the Senate, given the officer’s current function as chairperson of the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council.”
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“Thus, in case of a tie in voting in the Senate, the president of the Senate can break,” Oketch adds in the proposal that mirrors that of the US.
Furthermore, the first-term lawmaker wishes to abolish the position of nominated senators, arguing that electing a man and a woman as senators would have resolved the gender issue.
The lawmaker also wants Senate terms extended to six years to allow for presidential continuity and smooth transitions following presidential elections.
“Members of the county assembly have a four-year term with elections after every two years like that of the members of the National Assembly,” the Migori senator says in the proposal.
ODM’s Eddy Oketch Proposes 6-Year Term Limit For Senators
