Kenyans got the opportunity to give their views on a proposal to extend the term of office of the President and other elected leaders at a public hearing after initially sending written submissions.
The Justice, Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee of the Senate scheduled public hearings at the KICC on Friday, the last day Kenyans were to give their views.
Hundreds of Kenyans took part in the exercise, the majority of whom expressed opposition to the plan
This came even as the Senate's email system for submission of views crashed after over 240,000 messages were received.
The proposal to extend the term of President and other elected leaders from five to seven years has been met with outrage, with the majority terming the plan as unreasonable.
The Justice, Legal Affairs and Human Rights committee indicated on Thursday that it had so far received over 120,000 written submissions on the Bill sponsored by Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei by late evening.
It is the second proposal to alter the presidential term limit since President William Ruto took office in 2022.
The first attempt was pushed by Fafi MP Farah Yakub who sought to scrap the term limit.
He proposed the removal of the term limit and instead replace it with an age limit of 75 years. The proposal did not see the light of day.
During the week, it emerged that Kenya risks attracting the wrath of the World Anti-Doping Authority (WADA) over non-compliance.
The Anti-doping Agency of Kenya told the Sports and Culture Committee of the National Assembly it is not discharging its mandate effectively due to underfunding by the ex-chequer.
While noting that the agency’s funding has been reduced to only Sh20 million, CEO Sarah Shibutse told the committee that they require more than Sh50,000 to conduct a doping test of a single player.
"The ramifications of a declaration of non-compliance by WADA means that no Kenyan athlete will be eligible to participate in any international competitions,” she said.
She warned that Kenya will not be allowed to host any international events including but not limited to CHAN and AFCON.
Shibutse told the committee their landlord has served them with an eviction notice over rent arrears defaulted since July and the Internet disconnected.
It also emerged in another committee sitting that most of the so-called smart metre manufacturers in Kenya are actually assemblers.
Senate Standing Committee on Energy chaired by Nyeri Senator Wahome Wamatinga also learnt that there is a very low percentage of local content used in the assembly process.
The Secretary General Africa Smart Meters Association James Ngomeli noted that smart metre technology integrates several advanced components to deliver precise power metering, secure data transmission, and remote management.
The association urged the Senate Committee on Energy to help them come up with a legal framework to enable the local manufacturers to have the expertise required to fully develop the industry of smart meters.
Smart metres incorporate telecommunication technologies like cellular radios, Radio Frequency (RF) mesh networks, WiFi, and a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) for reliable data transmission.
Further, Senators launched a probe into reasons for the delayed payment of salaries and failure by the Moi University to remit third-party deductions of more than Sh4.1 billion.
Nandi senator Samson Cherarkey also raised concerns about the indefinite closure of the university due to a prolonged industrial strike by workers over alleged mismanagement of the university.
The Standing Committee on Education will conduct the probe.
The Joe Nyutu-led Committee will among others establish the amount of money received by the university from the Government in the 2024/2025 financial year and indicate the student enrolment at the university, particularly under the new university funding framework.