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{
    "id": 1024214,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1024214/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 304,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Tinderet, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Julius Melly",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 12849,
        "legal_name": "Julius Kipbiwot Melly",
        "slug": "julius-kipbiwot-melly"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I rise to support this Bill. I think today this House has done a lot of justice to former and current Members, especially in the two Bills that we dealt with in the morning. I just want to say that the Parliamentary Pensions (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill that is before this House is doing a lot of justice especially on Members’ retirement benefits. As Members have just put it, the Bill that we discussed in the morning mainly discussed issues that affected former Members. Even in the precincts of this Parliament, we have seen retired Members who are actually living from hand to mouth. Many of them cannot even afford medical bills. They cannot even afford their own basic needs like rent, fare and many others. Today, I think the 12th Parliament will go down as having been considerate especially of the former Members who served in the 1980s, 1990s up to very recently. Hon. Members, on this other Bill, I think the pensions committee has done a good job. However, there is need to have this Bill very clear. It should be very clear especially on the two terms that I have seen the Leader of the Minority Party and the other legal experts in this House trying to actually come out with. They have come up with a very clear pension scheme that is contributory and one that is going to be earned as a result of the organisation, that is, the Kenya National Assembly paying. This Bill is very important because after every Member leaves this House... It is common to all Kenyans that every Member of Parliament is also a social security individual. He is a moving social security individual. Wherever he is, he is supposed to pay for funeral expenses, medical bills and do all manner of social security in the society such that at the end of his 5, 10 or 15-year term, that particular individual has not invested anything for himself. So, without this Bill, most of us will retire paupers. It will be very difficult for a number of us here today in the next 10 or 15 years to pay for their own bills. They cannot even afford the medical bills that they are supposed to have. Hon. Mbadi had put it very clear. From 50s to 60s, a number of us are getting old and by that, you need to have a very good medical scheme. I just want to ask the pensions committee to relook at this issue of medical scheme for Members of Parliament. I am saying so because currently we have a very good medical scheme but immediately your term is over, the only place a Member of Parliament can afford is the county referral hospital or county dispensaries. We need to really look at this because here is a man or woman who has served with dignity in this House. He has passed a number of laws and held a position of responsibility for some time. Therefore, like other countries in the world, he needs to have a very good medical scheme. Therefore, I propose that the pensions committee will look at it so that we have a very good medical scheme for these Members. At the same time, there is also the issue of retired councillors. If you look in our municipalities and villages, many of them cannot even afford food and fees for The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}