Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 106674,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/106674/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 319,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Lesrima",
    "speaker_title": "The Assistant Minister, Ministry of State for Provincial Administration and Internal Security",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 178,
        "legal_name": "Simon Saimanga Lesirma",
        "slug": "simon-lesirma"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker. I wish to congratulate hon. Mututho for bringing this Bill, which I must say at the outset, has the support of the Government. I also wish to thank him for agreeing and joining us in various fora of stakeholders, both internally in Kenya and also at the regional level, through various seminars where we discussed various issues to do with alcohol and its problems. I intend to take a very short time in support of this Bill. I just want to emphasize certain critical parts of the Bill. The first one is with regard to access of alcohol to young persons. I believe that we have a very serious problem of alcohol consumption by the young people in this country. There is unlimited access to alcohol in terms of getting alcohol and gaining access to premises where alcohol is consumed. I am very happy that Section 24 brings some controls in that area and Section 28 provides penalties for persons selling alcohol to young persons. I do not need to elaborate because the dangers of alcohol to young people have been given, for example, the problem of introduction to other hard drugs, accidents, moral issues leading to HIV/AIDS scourge. There are other issues that Members have mentioned here with regard to the capacity of the young people to engage in productive work. The importance of that section also lies in the fact that there is need for proof of age by way of identification in a number of forms, namely, the production of identity cards, passports or any other identification that the Minister may prescribe under the rules in this Act. This is very important because this is a very weak area of control in this country. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, when you observe most developed countries like the United States of America and Europe, consumption of alcohol by young people is heavily controlled through the control of access to premises where alcohol is sold. We are very weak on that section in this country. So, I am very happy that, that section introduces those limits. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, the second point that I want to raise is the question of adulteration of alcohol. Once the C hang’aa Prohibition Act is abolished, obviously there will be temptations for those who may be licensed to process and sell alcohol to do some adulteration. We have a history of very serious cases leading to blindness in various parts of the country; where even the alcohol being consumed at homes has been adulterated by adding all sorts of poisons to make it more potent. I think this clause is very important and I wish the 34 Wednesday, 7th April, 2010(A) penalties could even be higher for any person who has been licensed to manufacture alcohol and attempts adulteration. You will recall that Uganda allowed the processing and manufacture of Uganda Waragi, which is an equivalent of chang’aa, but I am told that a number of years down the line, one of the biggest challenges that Uganda faces is the issue of adulteration, which was not there at the initial stages when Waragi was being bottled and sold in sachets. I think that clause is very critical; that heavy penalties should be imposed on any establishment that breaks that law. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I am also very happy that this law provides for the control of sale of alcohol through vending machines, sachets and also in other forms such as sweets, chocolates and so on. This is because we are aware that some people are inducing our young people through the establishment of kiosks not very far from schools, to sell sweets which have been laced with drugs. So, we should provide for heavy penalties to protect our children. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, the other aspect of this law that I find very important is the one that deals with education and information. The roles of the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health have also been brought on board. I am happy to see that the school syllabi will contain information at very early stages on the dangers of alcohol. Also, Clause 65 deals with the rehabilitation of alcoholics. This is a very serious matter in this country. The facilities for rehabilitation of alcoholics are very few. I can only recall the Government establishments within Mathari Mental Hospital and Coast Provincial Hospital. Mathari Mental Hospital has a wing for rehabilitation of alcoholics and also drug addicts. If you get the opportunity to visit those facilities, you will find that a number of patients there are young persons and some are university lecturers. It is also the only facility that I know within the Government establishment that charges the lowest fees. Doctors and practioners will inform you that you require a minimum of 90 days to go through detoxification and other rehabilitation programmes, to come out of these programmes. At a cost of Kshs400, you can imagine that very few Kenyans would be able to afford that kind of facility even within the Government institutions. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, the other institutions providing rehabilitation facilities and counselling are basically missionaries. I want to congratulate the churches and some private individuals for their participation in this sector. The charges are not less than Kshs2, 000 per day. So, you can imagine at the rate of Kshs2, 000 for 90 days, very few Kenyans would be able to afford. So, I welcome the introduction of the fund under Clause 5, which will provide for collection of funds to support the agency, which at the moment is the National Agency for the Campaign Against Drug Abuse (NACADA) to set up rehabilitation centres to support other stakeholders who will come on board, such as Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), churches and several youth centres. We need many more stakeholders because this is a burden that the Government alone cannot handle. It is going to be a costly affair but the investments are worth it. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, while on that point, I would like to urge Members to support NACADA in the forthcoming Budget. Their budget is very limited; at Kshs210 million for the last two or three years when, in fact, I know that they require Kshs1.2 billion, at least, to make a substantial impact. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, finally, this is a very good law, because under Clause 66 it provides for the establishment of regulations by the Minister to cover a wide range of issues that we may overlook in the passage of this Bill. With those few remarks, I beg to support. 35 Wednesday, 7th April, 2010(A)"
}