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{
    "id": 1156727,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1156727/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 300,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kathiani, WDM-K",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Robert Mbui",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1750,
        "legal_name": "Robert Mbui",
        "slug": "robert-mbui"
    },
    "content": "First, I would like to thank him for coming up with a great Motion. One of the responsibilities of Members of Parliament is to legislate. Coming up with such great amendments to the Health Act is commendable. What Hon. Mabongah has done is to represent his people by dealing with issues of concern to them. At the same time, he is legislating by proposing amendments to the law. That is excellent. This is the kind of leadership that this country requires— people that react to the problems of the nation. And they not only react but provide solutions, whether legislative or otherwise. It is not just about complaining. I listened to him—he did not complain or lament. He talked about real issues and he is providing solutions through legislation. If all of us, from the President to his deputy to Members of Parliament and to governors would do the same, this country would be far. We would not continuously complain on the streets about things that are going wrong. Upon Independence, our forefathers identified three issues that they had to deal with: ignorance, poverty and disease. Disease is what we are dealing with now. It is a major problem that continues to affect Kenyans. In fact, it has become worse than when we got Independence. The types of diseases prevalent now are advanced. They are many more. Maybe it is because of the diet we eat or lifestyles we live. People now live luxurious lifestyles. We are prone to major lifestyle diseases. There is a big healthcare problem. That is why the Constitution addresses the issue of health. The Bill of Rights in the Constitution provides that everyone has a right to proper medical care. That means we have to access quality care so that we can live healthy lives. Setting up cancer centres in every region answers the question of providing proper medical care for our people. It is a very good proposal. I have listened to the seconder who said that not only do we require these centres to be set up but they have to be properly manned and equipped. You can put a building and say it is a centre. Nothing will happen there. If you visit our constituencies, you will notice that before we were stopped from dealing with healthcare, we had put up dispensaries, which are still there. They are just buildings. There are no doctors, no equipment and no medicine. There is no treatment that takes place there but the people still call them hospitals. We need to come up with cancer centres that are properly equipped, properly manned and functional. In fact, we must provide the exact standards in legislation so that we ensure that we do not just put up buildings in order to respond to what has been said. The Constitution also provides that no one should be denied emergency medical treatment for any reason. I guess that is to do with first aid. From the proposal I have heard, the Member proposes it should not just be about emergency treatment. No one should be denied medical treatment. We need to figure out if it is possible. In private hospitals, it might be difficult to enforce. But in public hospitals, no one should be asked to make a payment before they are treated. I have heard the analysis that all these doctors are paid by taxpayers and the medicine is paid for by us. Why would people go to a hospital and be told to make a payment before they are treated? I think the proposal in the Bill makes sense, so that Kenyans can get value healthcare. The Universal Health Coverage (UHC) programme, where those who are able to pay for their healthcare pay while those unable to pay are paid for, will go a long way in ensuring that the problem the Bill seeks to address is sorted out. Going forward, we must ensure that the health of our people is properly taken care of. I like the penalties proposed. If we had a way of making them heftier, I would propose that we increase the penalties. This is the problem that we face. People become sick, they are treated and get better. But people do not leave the hospital when they are completely well. They leave hospital to have bed rest at home. After being released, a doctor tells you that you cannot go home 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."
}