The Kenya government has three wings – the executive, legislature and judiciary. The executive arm is headed by the President, currently Mwai Kibaki, who got voted in under the auspices of the Party of National Unity. Plus, he is the head of state and the commander in chief of the army. The President is elected under a multi-party political system for a maximum of two five-year terms.
The President now shares executive power with the Prime Minister Raila Odinga (who belongs to the Orange Democratic Movement) following a political settlement concluded to halt the violence that followed the disputed 2007 general elections. The Premier is the head of the cabinet and oversees the activities of the all of the government departments that fall under the various ministries.
However , the position of Prime Minister isn't provided for by the new Constitution that was passed with a huge majority in a plebiscite conducted in 2010. The Constitution was subsequently promulgated and it’s hoped that it’ll herald a new age of Kenya politics. It makes provisions for a gradual reform of all the wings of govt..
When the new Constitution is completely operational, the country will be administratively divided into 47 counties each of which will be led by a voted-in governor. There counties will replace the present 8 provinces and will operate semi-autonomously from the national govt.
The second wing of the government of Kenya is the legislature, formally known as the National Assembly but more commonly called Parliament. It is controlled by the Speaker, currently Kenneth Marende, and consists of elected legislators who represent 210 constituencies round the country.
There are several dozen nominated parliamentary seats which are shared out by the political parties according to their strength and which should represent special interest groups. The parliamentarians are essentially accountable for passing the country’s laws which are then assented to by the President before they become law. But they also play an oversight role on the executive branch.
The 3rd arm of the Kenya government is the Judiciary. It is led by a Chief Justice (now Willy Mutunga) and comprises a system of courts that has the Supreme Court at its pinnacle. This is the highest appellate court and has power to hear matters requiring constitutional interpretation.
Imani Kimatt lives and works in Kenya. She enjoys writing about various issues on the country like facts about Kenya.
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