Cabinet today resolved to support the biometric voter registration system as a policy guideline to help build public confidence in the electoral system ahead of the general elections.

At a meeting chaired by President Mwai Kibaki at State House Nairobi, the Cabinet advised the IEBC to pursue the matter of the biometric system that will give more credibility and contribute to ensuring a free, fair and transparent election.

To further boost the electoral process, Cabinet resolved to waive the 300 shilling fee required for those seeking to replace their national identity cards. This will ensure that no one is denied their voting right as outlined in the constitution. The Cabinet encouraged those who may have lost their id’s to get a replacement as soon as possible.

The Cabinet also ordered the relevant government ministries and departments to fast-track the issuance of id’s to Kenyan youth who are of age but warned that non-Kenyans must not be issued with the document.

The Cabinet has also assured Kenyans that the Government has taken the necessary measures to deal with the Ebola disease that has been reported in neighbouring Uganda. The Cabinet appreciated steps including surveillance at all entry points at airports and border posts. The meeting pointed out that no case of ebola had yet been established in Kenya. Today’s meeting also passed the following Constitution related bills in time for their debate in parliament.

1. The National Security Council Bill, 2012.

2. The National Intelligence Service Bill, 2012.

3. The Kenya Defense Forces Bill, 2012.

4. The Leadership and Integrity Bill, 2012

5. The Right to Petition Parliament (Procedure) Bill, 2012.

The approval of the five bills means that Cabinet has now completed working on bills that were required to be passed before the 27th August 2012 deadline.

Cabinet also approved the following other bills.

1. The Vetting of Judges and Magistrates (Amendment) Bill, 2012. The bill extends the mandate of the vetting board to enable completion of their work.

2. National Cohesion and Integration (Amendment) Bill 2012. The bill gives commissioners of the NCIC terms similar to those of other commissions.

3. The Truth, Justice and Reconciliation (Amendment) Bill, 2012. The bill seeks to extend by 9 months the term of the TJRC. The Cabinet however directed the commission to rationalize their staffing levels and retain only the core group required to complete their work as outlined in their mandate.

4. The National Transport Safety Authority Bill, 2012 and the Interventions by the Government to address Road Safety Challenges in Kenya. In this regard the Cabinet expressed the Governments concerns over road safety in the country and ordered that all necessary steps be taken in this regard.

Today’s meeting also gave the go-ahead for the construction of a New Modern High Speed High Capacity Standard Gauge Railway from Mombasa to Kampala with branch lines to Kisumu (Kenya) and Pakwach and Nimule (Uganda).


PPS
3RD AUGUST, 2012