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{
    "id": 587584,
    "url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/587584/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 357,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Ong’era",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13117,
        "legal_name": "Janet Ongera",
        "slug": "janet-ongera"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me this opportunity so that I may contribute to this Bill. Let me begin by congratulating Sen. (Prof.) Lesan for bringing up this Bill which attempts to provide for home based care for senior citizens. Article 9 of this Bill provides for family and community care of senior residents and citizens of this country. What Sen. (Prof.) Lesan meant was the establishment of a welfare fund or scheme for senior citizens of Kenya. However, this has not come up clearly under the Bill and it is something that the distinguished Senator should look at. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, we know that our African society, particularly in Kenya, has not reached a point where we can have a mass evacuation of our elderly citizens. Perhaps, this needs to come out clearly. In the Bill, I have not seen a clear distinction of how senior citizens will be kept in these homes. In Section 28, the distinguished Senator has elaborated clearly how the care for senior citizens will be done in the homes and their facilitation in terms of quality care for the citizens. This would be a very good thing, had he established within the Act how the welfare state could be provided and whether there will be funding for such activities. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I have challenges in certain sections that have been raised by the distinguished Senator and which are here for debate. These are Sections 6, 10, 12, 16 and 17, which I oppose. In Section 6 of this Bill, there is no way we can start involving the national Government in this particular exercise, especially for the provision of care for the senior citizens, when we are devolving services and bringing them closer to the people. It would have been better if Section 6 dealt with the county governments because they are closer to the people and senior citizens and could know the problems facing them. Section 2 attempts to establish an Authority. This means that we will go back to nationalizing systems of governance when we have devolved these systems. Therefore, I do not support the establishment of an Authority. This matter could have been left to the county governments to manage within their departments and take care of home based care for senior citizens. Section 10 which I am also opposed to says that:- “Each county government shall establish and implement community based programmes for the care and protection of senior citizens residing within their counties.” This would be a very expensive exercise for the counties to carry. We know that they do not even have enough funds for services that they have been allocated, for example, early childhood care and roads construction, which could have been left within the management of the national government. If this Government cannot pay the salaries of teachers, how would they manage to establish home based care for senior citizens The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}