Peter Opiyo
17 January 2008
Nairobi — Speaker of the National Assembly, Mr Kenneth Marende, kicked off his term with a pledge to institute radical reforms.
Among the pledges is live coverage of parliamentary proceedings, which has been on the agenda since 2000.
A 15-member parliamentary committee on broadcasting first mooted the idea when it presented its recommendations to the House in 2000.
Led by the then Cherangany MP, Mr Kipruto arap Kirwa, the committee was constituted following a successful Motion that he himself brought for debate in the House.
The committee was charged with reviewing the procedure and regulations inhibiting live broadcast of House proceedings.
The committee then toured local media houses, the University of Nairobi's School of Journalism and the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication, to study operations of existing models in live broadcasts.
It also visited South Africa and Britain in a study of South Africa Broadcasting Corporation and British Broadcasting Corporation.
A glimmer of hope came with the committee's recommendation that the process starts in July 2001. But this was never to be in what was later termed as 'logistical reasons.'
The committee recommended the Government allocate Sh80million for the project.
A year later when Kirwa moved the Motion for the introduction of the live coverage, he termed the 2001 dateline as 'overtaken by events,' and proposed July 2002.
Members supported the Motion, saying live coverage would harness transparency and improve the quality of debate.
The habitual quorum hitches would equally be put under check, they argued.
Though the members were unanimous on live coverage the focus of cameras became a major departure, with some MPs arguing it should be restricted to the Speaker.
In 2003, former Speaker Mr Francis ole Kaparo announced the Chamber would undergo a facelift in readiness for the installation of the live coverage facility.
And given the renovation was not a necessity, Mr Joseph Kamotho, a then member of the Parliamentary Service Commission told Parliament that the facility would be in place in 2006 and that tenders had been sent out.
Up to this point it is not certain what stalled the project but with Marende taking up the matter in his acceptance speech, it is hoped it won't be another quandary.
Currently live coverage is only allowed during State opening of Parliament and during the Budget.
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