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{
    "id": 1060391,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1060391/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 170,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Gichugu, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Gichimu Githinji",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13341,
        "legal_name": "Robert Gichimu Githinji",
        "slug": "robert-gichimu-githinji"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for the opportunity to contribute to this Business Laws (Amendment) Bill. Let me start by thanking the Government, through the Leader of the Majority Party, for bringing what I would call an ideal omnibus Bill. This is because it touches on the very minor things that do not go to the content and substance of the Acts that are sought to be amended. As I support the Bill, first the Industrial Training Act, the National Hospital Insurance Fund Act and the National Social Security Fund Act, basically seek to harmonise the dates for the statutory deductions therein. As has been submitted by some of the Members who have already contributed, I think the other statutory deductions also need to be brought on board so that they can also be harmonised to avoid confusion by the payers. However, I believe that is business for another day because we do not have the other Acts where the other deductions fall under the current business laws. I believe with the remarks and the contributions that have come from this House, whoever needs to do what needs to be done can bring them on board and we can harmonise them. Making business registration easy by elimination of the use of the company seal is a move towards the right direction. However, we need to ask ourselves what follows after making it easy for someone to register a business. I think the registration is not enough because, as a Government and as institutions that are mandated to empower especially our youth, we should go ahead and provide environments where these youths can easily be able to do business. One of the areas that we should be looking at is not only the local businesses within Kenya. Having signed a direct agreement with the United Kingdom, the Kenya-UK trading agreement, I think it is high time we empowered the department of trade to be able to sensitise the communities and Kenyans on the areas and openings that are available for us to utilise for the benefit of exports. I hold the school of thought that this country will only grow and progress economically if we look at ways of expanding our exports but not relying on just the local trade whereby we will be doing like exchange of goods which for lack of a better term, I would call barter trade within ourselves. The ease of doing business is so wide and I believe it is high time the Government also came with an Act of ease of doing business, which will touch on each and every aspect of the economy whereby we can make it easy for businesses in this country to prosper. On the amendment on the Insolvency Act, I agree it is important to introduce a pre- insolvency moratorium in the Act so that for businesses that are likely to collapse, there is a safety measure to help them so that they are not invaded by creditors and everyone who usually rushes to get whatever they have instead of trying to resuscitate them. Beyond that we should also be asking ourselves why some institutions and companies collapse. We actually should be addressing the preventive measures rather than the healing measure as is being addressed by this provision. Of great excitement is the Small Claims Court. Backlog in courts have always been there for ages now. I believe the amendment to fix the time for expeditious adjudication of these cases to 60 days…"
}