Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo has criticised the performance of the 13th Parliament, faulting lawmakers for failing to properly distinguish their roles within the House.

Speaking during the Katiba Day celebrations at KICC on Wednesday, August 27, 2025, the legislator observed that members of parliament have continued to brand themselves as “government” and “opposition” instead of operating as a majority and minority.

“I don’t think we are doing well in the 13th parliament. We have MPs from the party that is in the executive, and because they are the majority, they call themselves the government, and the minority call themselves the opposition. MPs are yet to learn that there is no government or opposition inside the parliament; their majority and minority are expected to oversee the executive,” he stated

Amollo, who was part of the team that drafted the 2010 Constitution, noted that this misinterpretation has weakened parliament’s ability to effectively execute its mandate of lawmaking and oversight over the executive.

He traced the problem back to the constitutional negotiations, explaining that the Committee of Experts had initially recommended a parliamentary system of government, but MPs at the time opted for a presidential system. According to him, this decision has entrenched divisions that manifest as government and opposition politics within the legislature.

“The committee of experts had proposed a parliamentary system; members of parliament, in their wisdom, in Naivasha changed it to a presidential system, and so we had to make changes to adapt to the presidential system,” Otiende Omollo stated.

Progress made by parliament

Despite his criticism, the Rarieda MP acknowledged that parliament has made notable progress under the 2010 Constitution.

He pointed out that the institution has been able to exercise its constitutional powers, including vetting state officials and executing impeachment proceedings, citing the recent case involving former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua as an example of the legislature’s growing independence.

“There is success, but there is work to be done; at least in our favour, 15 years down the line, we still have a bicameral parliament, we are still able to vet, and we are even still to impeach as recently did,” Otiende stated.