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{
    "id": 1092641,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1092641/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 17,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Wetangula",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 210,
        "legal_name": "Moses Masika Wetangula",
        "slug": "moses-wetangula"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. Listening to you reading the Petition by Mr. Taratisio Kawe sends a chill down my spine. Mr. Taratisio could be a retired policeman who is probably suffering from nostalgia of the bad old days because it is a terrible proposal to claw back on the Bill of Rights. How our clerks even processed this as a Petition fit to come to this House defeats logic. The man wants detention without trial, denial of bail and he wants us to go back to the bad old days when people used to be arrested and the DPP would walk into court flamboyantly and say: “This is not a charge. It is just a holding charge” and calls upon the court to hold the suspect ad infinitum . That is what this Petition is asking us to do. The Committee of JLAC that is likely to look at this Petition should be very careful as the Senator for Vihiga has said because if this House can countenance any backward steps on the Bill of Rights it tells you that then we have learned no lessons from our history. People like the late Martin Shikuku, George Anyona and Jean Marie Seroney were arrested within the precincts of this House. There was a time when the late George Anyona was talking about corruption in Mombasa and the then PC for Mombasa, the late Mahihu was in the gallery of Parliament showing Anyona a gun; and nothing happened to him. We do not want to back go to those days. My brother here from Embu knows because he has been around longer. Kenyans have fought, died, shed blood and been locked up to get this freedom. The only point that the Committee should take up from this Petition is expeditious disposal of cases. We do not want cases to linger in court forever and say “hold people for longer”. He is even suggesting that the suspect should be locked up as investigations go on. On what basis do you lock up somebody when you are investigating? You can only take people to court upon conclusion of investigations. So, the JLAC Committee - and I think Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. is a Member - should treat this Petition with extreme suspicion and caution. Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir."
}