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{
    "id": 1196244,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1196244/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 246,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Bumula, DAP-K",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Wanami Wamboka",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Hon. Temporary Speaker, thank you so much for this opportunity. I think the good Clerks-at-the-Table kept the Temporary Speaker busy that she did not hear what Hon. Mwengi Mutuse was saying. I beg to second this Motion on recognition and remuneration of village elders. Village elders are salaried officials of national administration who, though serving voluntarily, command significant influence within their territories and sit on most public boards. They are the lowest unit of administration. They suffer most. These are the people who work without offices. They promote peace and good co-existence among neighbours in the villages for free. These people solve domestic rows and conflicts. A husband and a wife fighting in the village will call upon a village elder to go and solve their issues. These people are the main teachers of the society. We are aware that with all they do, they are the most vulnerable. They do not even have medical schemes. These are some of the people who played very crucial roles for all of us as Members of this House. In my case, it was easy for me to be a Member of Parliament because I had a very good rapport with village elders. They are the people who know every corner of every village of every region. I appeal to Members of this House to come together and support this Motion and ensure that at the end of the day these people have a smile on their face. I applaud the Cabinet Secretary nominee for the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Administration. We have approved his name and he will be sworn in. When he faced vetting and was asked about some of these pertinent issues that start from the bottom of their administration, he recognised the Nyumba Kumi fellows. He said that they will be earning an allowance of Kshs500. These are the children of village elders. We want to convince and propose to the incoming Cabinet Secretary that before he reaches to Nyumba Kumi, he must start by addressing these issues. It is there in law. The National Government Coordination Act of 2013, Section 14 bestows power to the Cabinet Secretary, with the approval of Parliament, as my good friend Hon. Wakili Mwengi Mutuse said, to establish any government delivery unit. As such, we will be expecting that from the good Cabinet Secretary. Let us support these people. Let us stand with them. I raise my reservations because I am aware that Hon. Wamalwa, the then Sabaoti MP, raised this Motion in 2008. He wanted to introduce amendments to the then Chiefs’ Act to create offices of the village elders and provide for requirements for appointment and remuneration. Up to now nothing has been done. I do not want to grow into the list of fears. We are debating this beautiful Motion here but it is going to rot and gather dust on the shelves of this Parliament or I do not know where in Government. We must as a House enforce and have mechanisms of having the Government do things that this House passes. It is incumbent on the Chair of this House to give direction of how this will happen. We cannot continue debating very good Motions and Bills but nothing happens at the end of the day. I am optimistic that, at the end of this, we are going to have our village elders have something for their families and something to care for their families’ medication, have food on the table for their families, and pay fees for their children. It is very discouraging that you have someone who works for you for very long hours, yet you do not remunerate them. In the spirit of the clarion call of this Government of ‘bottom-up’, today we passed the topmost officials. The ‘bottom’ in this scenario are the village elders. So, we expect our President, Hon. William Ruto, to put these people into his policy, so that they get down to the grassroots. If the Kenya Kwanza Government wants to deliver and they are talking about hustlers, who will help them identify hustlers? It is the village elders. Who will help them identify mamambogas ? It is the village elders. On that note, we beseech the President to look into the welfare of these people because he also needs the support of this House, which we have no problem giving. 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."
}