Any Law is Good – Only to the Extent of its Implementation

When we voted for the new constitution, I was convinced that it was not going to need any significant changes so soon. I may not understand the workings of the law but I know it should not be tampered with every so often. When I heard about the proposed security bill, I didn’t know what the hullabaloo was all about – Until I flipped through a copy!

Like I have said before, I am only a layman when it comes to these matters. My understanding is rather basic and I am bound to be wrong. One thing I can’t understand however is how the new laws contained in the bill are going to make us safer from terrorists. I can’t see, for example, how the laws would have helped the Government to deal better with the West Gate attack if they had been in place by then. In my largely uninformed mind, I also don’t believe they would have prevented the Lamu or Mandera attacks.

The proposed punishments against the media and bloggers, appear intended to make the sharing of information virtually impossible. This is because these are the only sources of information for all of us laymen out here. If you ask me, this seriously infringes on the freedom of expression. This would leave us in the dark and gives a whole new meaning to the statement “Return to the dark days”.

I dread to imagine what some corrupt NIS officers would do with the power to conduct premises searches without warrants. I can envision them asking for “kitu kidogo” to “Passover” one’s house. This literally trashes the power of the judiciary to regulate such blatant infringements on our privacy.

The objectivity with which the National Police Service Commission coupled with parliament, identified suitable candidates for the position of Inspector General will be lost. It will now be at the whims of the executive to hire and fire at will.

My understanding of the law is basic at best. However, I know that a law is good only to the extent to which it is implemented. Any law looks good on paper but it is the results it produces on implementation that make it either good or bad. As a Country, we should not use trial and error to establish laws. Rather, we should learn from our past or that of others in order to come up with good laws.

I hope am wrong but this new bill appears geared towards taking power away from the people, the Judiciary, and the Legislature, and consolidating it in the Executive – just like in the “Good old days”. After that, the wave of terrorism will probably disappear mysteriously. If it will disappear because of the “effectiveness” of the new bill – Your guess is as good as mine. But then, you need not take me seriously – I am only a Layman!