Support gender parity – Business Daily

Just eight days before the world celebrates the International Women’s Day, whose theme this year is “Balance for Better”, Kenyan MPs have once again left no doubt that they are not interested in entrenching gender equity in political representation.

That the bill meant to give women greater say failed in Parliament due to lack of quorum speaks volumes about legislators’ commitment to breathing life into the spirit of the Constitution.

Now that the bill has failed for the fourth time, it is time for both MPs and political parties to find ways to achieve the two-thirds rule by ensuring that the onus is on parties to meet this threshold during their nominations ahead of elections. And where, after elections, parties are allocated special seats for youth and people living with disabilities, they should give priority to give these slots to women who meet this criteria.

Had this been done, say in the Senate after the last election, the Senate would have easily complied with the Constitution. Voters should also be encouraged to cast their ballots in favour of viable female parliamentary candidates. As it is, the failure by both male and female MPs to marshal the numbers needed to pass the bill is an indication that there is no political will to make gender parity a reality in the foreseeable future.