Nairobi — The National Assembly has disapproved of ministries for neglecting their public sensitization duties by abandoning bills in Parliament without adequate public sensitization.
This criticism follows the Assembly's decision to halt the progress of the Livestock Bill 2024, citing significant public misgivings and inadequate engagement by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.
Majority Leader Kimani Ichung'wah, addressing the issue in Parliament, highlighted the growing trend where ministries draft bills, submit them to the House, and then fail to engage the public on the contents and underlying policies.
The abdication of responsibility, according to Ichung'wah, has led to widespread misinformation and disinformation, particularly on social media, as citizens are left to interpret the bills on their own--often inaccurately.
"Ministries author bills, send those bills to the House and then abandon them," Ichung'wah stated.
"They do not take time to sensitize members of the public on the policies underpinning those bills. When people read things and interpret them in their way--sometimes not very accurately--the misinformed members of the public use whatever has been published to incite others. We have seen a lot of misinformation and disinformation being peddled online about this Livestock Bill."
The Majority Leader's remarks were a direct response to the outcry over the Livestock Bill 2024, which was scheduled for its first reading in the National Assembly.
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However, due to the public's concerns and the lack of prior sensitization, the House Business Committee decided to stay the bill's reading and any further considerations until the Ministry of Agriculture conducts comprehensive public outreach.
Ichung'wah emphasized that the decision aims to prevent the bill from suffering the same fate as the Finance Bill 2024, which was heavily criticized due to the spread of untruths.
"I have written to the Principal Secretary of the State Department of Livestock, asking them to conduct further public sensitization on the bill and the policy underpinning it. Once this process is complete, we will await further guidance on whether the ministry wants to proceed with the bill in its current form or make changes based on public feedback," he added.
The issue is not isolated. The Majority Leader also cited recent court rulings that nullified several health-related bills, such as the Social Health Insurance Fund Bill, due to insufficient public sensitization.
The courts had indicated that Parliament should have done more to engage the public, which Ichung'wah found perplexing, as he maintained that public sensitization is the responsibility of the ministries that author the bills.
"Parliament cannot sensitize members of the public; it is the responsibility of the ministries that own the bills," Ichung'wah asserted.
He noted that Parliament's role in public participation is limited to receiving and processing feedback from the public after the responsible ministries have adequately informed them.
