Senate pushes for more power, setting up clash with National Assembly

A major power struggle is unfolding in Parliament as the Senate and National Assembly brace for a showdown over a proposed law that seeks to limit the influence of the National Assembly while expanding the Senate’s authority.

The Constitution of Kenya Amendment Bill, 2025, sponsored by Nyamira Senator Okong’o Omogeni, proposes scrapping the Parliamentary Service Commission, which is currently chaired by National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula.

The Bill instead seeks to create separate service commissions for both Houses, each tasked with handling staffing and resource management.

“A Service Commission shall consist of the Speaker of the relevant House who shall be the chairperson,” the Bill states.

According to the proposal, each commission would also include a vice chairperson elected by members, two members from the majority party, one from the second-largest party, and an expert in public affairs.

The clerks of both Houses would serve as secretaries.

For matters affecting both chambers, a joint committee would be formed to oversee coordination.

“The service commissions shall have such joint meetings as they may consider necessary for the proper management of the Houses of Parliament,” the Bill reads.

The proposed law also seeks to expand the Senate’s role in approving key government appointments.

If passed, the Senate would vet high-ranking officials, including the Director of Public Prosecutions, Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice, Auditor General, Controller of Budget, and members of the Commission on Revenue Allocation and constitutional commissions.

Additionally, the Bill challenges the National Assembly’s exclusive control over the budget process.

Under the proposal, once the Budget Committee finalizes and approves estimates, they would be forwarded to the Senate for further review.

“When the estimates have been approved by the National Assembly, the estimates shall be referred to the Senate for consideration. The Senate may amend the approved estimates in a resolution supported by at least two-thirds of the county delegations in the Senate,” the Bill states.

If the Senate amends the budget, the National Assembly would need a two-thirds majority—233 votes—to overturn those changes.

Another key provision in the Bill would require the Kenya Defence Forces to submit reports to the Senate whenever troops are deployed to restore order in the country.

Omogeni is also pushing to remove the National Assembly Speaker as chairperson of tribunals handling the removal of judges, arguing that the role should instead be given to the Senate Speaker.

“The roles of both Houses should be defined,” the Bill states.

Meanwhile, in a separate but related discussion, Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo appeared before the Committee on Administration and Internal Security, chaired by Narok West MP Gabriel Tongoyo, to discuss concerns over the funding of administrative units.

“In terms of budgets, for us to do the implementation, we need an additional Sh2.1 billion. We were only given Sh666 million in the supplementary,” Omollo told the committee.

He further explained that the ministry had drafted a Cabinet Memorandum detailing guidelines for creating new administrative units, awaiting approval.

“Following the promulgation of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010, and the enactment of the National Government Coordination Act, 2013, it is a requirement that administrative units are gazetted before being operationalized," the PS stated.

"This ensures that all groups, including marginalized communities, have access to government services.”

Lawmakers raised concerns about delays in operationalizing some of these units, noting that some have remained inactive since the 2010 Constitution was adopted.

Tongoyo urged the ministry to act quickly and ensure the units become functional.