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{
    "id": 1191132,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1191132/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 4121,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nyeri Town, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Duncan Mathenge",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "It is sad in this country because up to 42 per cent of residual pesticides are found on a very popular food, sukuma wiki, which is practically consumed in every household right from State House to the rural colonial village in my county of Nyeri. In my constituency, we are literally fundraising for cancer treatment every weekend - literally every weekend! Many of the people affected have been working in the farms, especially those who have been spraying pesticides on coffee and horticultural produce. Therefore, the PCPB cannot escape censure from this House. They have been at the helm for quite some time. The question of inspection does not exist. On the question of standards, KEBS is also a culprit, KEPHIS, in terms of monitoring what is happening across the markets in our country… It is sad that in this country, no regulatory body is charged with controlling the quality of fertiliser that is supplied to our farmers. None whatsoever! There is a complete gap yet, we continue to claim that the way to go is to keep subsidising farm inputs. In India, with the increased consumption of chemical fertilisers and increased production of food, cancer cases have risen. As a result, very many county governments in India have gone organic. The use of simple bio-fertilisers which can be produced by farmers on their farms, simple technology that can be passed on to our farmers, is available; and evidence of its use shows that it has the capacity to reduce pesticides use by up to 40 per cent. We, however, continue encouraging our farmers to go and buy pesticides. The issue of leukaemia in children is directly linked to pesticides use. In Kiambu, where again pesticide use is very high, there have been reported cases of manhood defects in children. For how long can we, as a House, continue sitting here and turning a blind eye to the fact that we need to protect our people? Therefore, I urge us not to hesitate. The Select Committee on Implementation must be given teeth. It is time that this House looked collectively at who sits in the Committee. That Committee should be voted for directly as a Committee of this House so that they are answerable directly to this House in terms of what happens to the decisions that are made in this House. When they go out there, they have no takers. We cannot then continue claiming that we are the august House. We have people who have been sanctioned by this House and yet, we find them occupying offices in this country and in the Government. I wish to support this Motion. Thank you."
}