Addressing the Nation on Thursday in Parliament, President Uhuru broke one of the key laws of conducting business in the August House.
The President broke the language code that is allowed to be used within the floor of the House.
According to the Constitution, the official language to be used in Parliament is Kiswahili, English, and Kenyan Sign language.
“The official languages of Parliament shall be Kiswahili, English and Kenyan Sign language, and the business of Parliament may be conducted in English, Kiswahili and Kenyan Sign language,” Section 1 of Article 120 of Constitution reads.
The constitution adds that: “In case of a conflict between different language versions of an Act of Parliament, the version signed by the President shall prevail.”
However will handling over the government report to the National Assembly Speaker Justine Muturi, President Kenyatta is head saying “Erokamano” which is a Luo vernacular word meaning thank you.
This comes as the National Assembly set to officially begin the use of the Swahili language in its sessions every Thursday.
The Swahili session will commence after President Uhuru Kenyatta unveils new parliamentary rules today after issuing the State of the Nation Address.
National Assembly Speaker Justine Muturi said Parliament will promote the national heritage by using Swahili in its proceedings.
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He further noted that in the future each member will be required to have both versions of the standing orders.
“What we have done in the initial stages is to relax the rules a little bit so that members can mix Kiswahili with English when contributing,” he said as quoted by Nation.
