Leader of Majority in the National Assembly, Aden Duale, and Elgeyo Marakwet County Senator, Kipchumba Murkomen had a twitter fight over roles of the National Assembly and the Senate.
The two vocal Jubilee legislators clashed on which of the two Houses was superior to the other and also whether or not this was an important conversation to have.
Duale opined that there is confusion in the legislative work and line needs to be drawn so that the Senate knows its role.
“Now is the time for the National Assembly to return to the Supreme Court.,” he added.
But as if on cue, Murkomen, who is the Majority Leader in the Senate, argued that there were more pressing issues of national interest to discuss than engage in debate on roles of the National Assembly and the Senate.
“There are many problems bedeviling this nation other than fights between two Houses of Parliament. Currently Parliament is operating on less than 1/8 of its potential. I urge my colleague Hon Aden Duale to see the bigger picture,” he said.
Duale responded by emphasizing the importance of the debate on roles of the two Houses in apparent disagreement with Murkomen.
“No problem leader, important national conversation to strengthen legislative democracy in a bicameral system,” he said.
Under the current Constitution, the Senate is the upper house of the Parliament of Kenya. It was first established in 1963, abolished in 1966, and re-established by the 2010 Constitution. The National Assembly, on the other hand, is the lower house of the Parliament. Prior to the 11th Parliament in 1966, the Parliament served as a unicameral house.
