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{
    "id": 1181222,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1181222/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 262,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cheruiyot",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Majority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13165,
        "legal_name": "Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot",
        "slug": "aaron-cheruiyot"
    },
    "content": "International Airport (JKIA) heading towards the Middle East to see those young Kenyans as they depart. I always think about this. They are normally hounded in groups of about 100, 150 or 200. All of them are always adorned in T-shirts with labels of the recruiting bureaus or agency that is taking them to these far lands. As a leader, I always feel challenged, first of all, at the embarrassment collectively that we have not been able to give opportunities to our young people such that they are going to seek for the same in other far lands. It is a challenge which any leader who has a conscience and who believes in the beauty and the blessing that God gave us in this country must always have at the top of their mind. We must continue to challenge ourselves and find the courage and the energy to pull together until such a point that we shall reduce the number of citizens we are sending outside the country to go and do domestic work. I would not have a problem if we were exporting professional labour because we have 99 per cent chance that they will not run into the kind of problems the domestic workers end up finding themselves in. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, never mind all that I have said. We, as County, must still consider what we can do. As we try to solve the problem that I have described, we must ensure that those who continue to head into the Middle East to work as domestic workers have the best working environment, cordial and respectful atmosphere. I have heard people say that the Committee needs to travel and interact with them. I do not think that is necessary because if you go through the records of the HANSARD of this House, you will learn that the Senate Committee on Labour and Social Welfare was in Saudi Arabia hardly six months ago. They came back with a Report with far reaching recommendations that are yet to be implemented by both the Ministry and the legislative proposals that have been brought to this House. Sen. Veronica Maina may need to check that later. I do not know if she is a Member of the Senate Committee on Labour and Social Welfare. If she is not, I challenge her to not just stop at reminding us of the need for us, as a country, to take better care of these Kenyans. She has taken a front role in highlighting the issues that these Kenyans are facing in this particular session of Parliament. She should go a step ahead and remind the Senate Committee to push for the implementation of the Report which is a property of this House. It must have been debated around January or February this year after the Committee visited the place. They gave proposals on what should be done with the safe houses and the agencies that continue to send our children into this death traps. There is a proposal fresh vetting. Unfortunately, this vetting has been done so many times. The punishment that is contained therein should be very expensive that no agency should ever consider sending anyone’s child to a place where they are going to suffer. As such, the agencies will ensure that they know the working conditions, where those girls are going to live by the time they take their passports, process their documentation and grant them work visas for either Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait or any other Middle East country. The agencies should be sure of the contact of the person the"
}