The National Assembly was the scenes of chaos today after Kwale Woman Representative, Zuleikha Hassan, was thrown out for walking in with a baby.
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The presiding Speaker, Chris Omulele, ordered both her and her lactating 5-month-old baby to be kicked out of the house.
Omulele defended his actions saying that her action was against the standing orders of the house for any member to bring along a toddler. Zulekha for her part said that she had an emergency telling journalists;
I had an emergency, I have to come to work, we have two sessions today a morning and afternoon one. Parliament in 2013, the psc passed that we should have a room, a creche where we can breastfeed our child.
Her female colleagues backed her up, chanting ‘ a baby is not an atomic bomb’, going on to question why private space for breastfeeding parliamentarians hadn’t been created, despite PSC’s recommendation 6 years ago.
The Woman Rep stood her ground outside parliament, making it clear that it was the first time she had brought her child to the National Assembly.
The incident, which has sparked a debate, coincidentally happened during the world breastfeeding week, with some questioning the timing of the entire fiasco. Some comments from Kenyans are below;
Ken mutai SMH!!! We need to move away from this archaic mode of thinking,in some countries,Australia as a case example not only are mps allowed to carry their babies to parliament,they are allowed to breastfeed them as proceedings go on
Aduma Mutiva She should be given an award already. New question: Why is Parliament’s architecture so ignorant of the fact that its female occupants/users will be nursing mothers at one point or another?
Shilaa254 This public officers Ethics act has to be looked into….what is wrong in someone bringing a baby to work ???after all they sit all day in parliament 😂😂😂😂
nerd Parliament isn’t a place for babies..let her take her activism (if it was so) elsewhere.. that place can be rowdy,and if anything she’s endangering her child🙄🙄.spare us the drama
Njehu,HSC 🇰🇪 This is not Australia, our standing orders are different.
She should spare us the rhetorics and not report to work further more av never heard her contribute in the house. Smh!
What do you think?
