Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 1185056,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1185056/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 665,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Thangw’a",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker Sir. I rise to support this Motion. If you remember very well, in 2020, this country was invaded by locusts. It is argued that those insects consumed food equivalent to what 35,000 people could consume in a day. If we trace back to why our people are hungry, that is one of the factors that contributed to what we are going through today. I believe that the current Government is putting measures to curb hunger. It has embarked on Zero Hunger Agenda by providing relief food to affected areas. We have seen the Government distributing food. Although not enough, it has distributed food to some areas in this country. Secondly, immediately after the Cabinet was sworn in, it approved a Cabinet Paper on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). Contrary to what most people think, GMOs have been used in many countries as one way of mitigating hunger. This is because It reduces the cost of production. By doing so, farmers can farm crops such as corn, soya bean, and rice. So, when the Government approved the use of GMOs in this country, it opened the doors for us to discuss this issue and as a House come up with laws or regulations to control the use of GMOs. So, I believe that the Government is working very hard to make sure that nobody dies of hunger. I urge this House to support the Government. We cannot say that what is used in a number of other countries is wrong. Other countries are using GMOs to fight hunger. I know that this is the Motion that will be discussed later on, but GMO’s reduce the use of pesticides. Consequently, the cost of production goes down and increases production. This gets something into the farmer’s pocket. So, I support the Government and urge that it upscales its measures to save its citizens from succumbing to hunger. We also understand that agriculture is devolved and the county Governments are mandated to develop, grow, and support sustainable agriculture. I urge the Standing Committee on Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries to invite the County Executives to come and explain the measures they have put in place to ensure that our people do not die of hunger. We understand that for so many county Governments, the only thing they do is give fertilizer. Why do they do that? Some of them have made it a kind of money- making venture. There are no extension officers who go direct to the farmer to see whether they are utilizing the fertilizer well and growing the crops the way, they are supposed to."
}