[kictanet] Proposed Amendments to KICA in Statute Law Misc. Amendment Bill 2015

Thu Oct 15 20:04:32 EAT 2015

Kivuva and all

The larger questions that we eventually need to ask is:-

1. What is the Role of the Regulator in this rapidly fluid digital global economy?

2. Are Government bureaucrats equipped and empowered enough to navigate this Brave new world? 

3. And when these same government functionaries work hard to equip themselves to navigate this new world do we fully support them or vilify them? 

I suspect the answers will come through deeper and more meaningful interaction between the various players - both government and non-government players. 

Ali Hussein
Principal
Hussein & Associates
+254 0713 601113 / 0770906375

Twitter: @AliHKassim
Skype: abu-jomo
LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim
Blog: www.alyhussein.com

"Discovery consists in seeing what everyone else has seen and thinking what no one else has thought".  ~ Albert Szent-Györgyi

Sent from my iPad

> On 15 Oct 2015, at 5:08 PM, Mwendwa Kivuva via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
> 
> Thanks Kapiyo.
> 
> Ali, I second you. The amendments are very minimal. But the consequences are huge. 
> 
> From first glance, what this amendments are doing is to dilute the laid down constitutional safeguards, checks and balances. Giving the CS unilateral powers is just dictatorship for a lack of a better word. KICA, and the Constitution envisaged a regulator free from any political, and government interference. And the court has ruled severally on the place of CA in our society.
> 
> And changing the law when things are not going your way is the high road to chaos.
> 
> This is what the KICA says: "5B. Independence of the Authority
> Except as provided for under this Act or any other law, the Commission shall exercise its functions independent of any person or body."
> 
> Constitution of Kenya, Article 34
> (5) Parliament shall enact legislation that provides for the establishment of a body, which shall—
> (a) be independent of control by government, political interests or commercial interests;
> (b) reflect the interests of all sections of the society; and
> (c) set media standards and regulate and monitor compliance with those standards.
> 
> 
> All issues of dominance have been passed from CA to CAK. I don't know what the community feels about that. When Safaricom and Airtel dominance war was highly heated, CAK "seemed" to support Safaricom, and CA "seemed" to support Airtel. Does this then mean that Safaricom has pulled the rug under Airtel's feet?
> 
> Maybe we can have a structured response and give input to "The Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, 2015"
> 
> Regards
> 
> ______________________
> Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya
> 
> "There are some men who lift the age they inhabit, till all men walk on higher ground in that lifetime." - Maxwell Anderson
> 
> 
>> On 14 October 2015 at 18:00, Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>> Victor
>> 
>> Thanks for sharing. Even without reading the proposed amendments I raise a serious red flag regarding the proposed abrogation of powers that have to do with regulation to the executive. What then is the purpose of a supposedly independent CA?
>> 
>> Ali Hussein
>> Hussein & Associates
>>  
>> Tel: +254 770 906375/ 713 601113
>> Twitter: @AliHKassim
>> Skype: abu-jomo
>> LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim
>> Blog: www.alyhussein.com
>> 
>> 
>> Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the organizations that I work with.
>> 
>>> On Wed, Oct 14, 2015 at 4:44 PM, Victor Kapiyo via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>> Dear all,
>>> 
>>> Pls see below, link to the Statute Law Misc. Amendment Bill 2015, which proposes to amend several laws, including KICA.
>>> 
>>> According to the objects and reasons:
>>> 
>>> Kenya Information And Communications Act, of 1998 - Firstly to align it with the Competitions Act, 2014 in respect of the criteria for being a dominant market undertaking and secondly to harmonize the regulation making power so that it is exercised by the Cabinet Secretary in consultation with the Authority. 
>>> 
>>> The Competition Act (No. 12 of 2010 -  The Bill seeks to amend the Competition Act so as to clarify that the power to Prescribe, as specified in the Act is to be exercised by the Cabinet Secretary in consultation with the Authority.
>>> 
>>> http://kenyalaw.org/kl/fileadmin/pdfdownloads/bills/2015/StatuteLaw__MiscellaneousAmendmens_Bill_164of2015.pdf
>>> 
>>> Victor Kapiyo
>>> 
>>> ====================================================
>>> “Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude” Zig Ziglar
>>> 
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>> 
>> 
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>> 
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> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
> 
> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
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