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{
    "id": 1231118,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1231118/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 246,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Moiben, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Phylis Bartoo",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I also want to add my voice to the debate on gambling initiated by Hon. Mathenge. Pathological gambling is not a bad idea. However, the problem comes in when it becomes addictive. When it becomes an addiction, it is just like any other drug or alcohol addiction, which the society is currently trying to fight. For example, the President of Kenya and the Deputy President are working with the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) to find a way of stopping the use of drugs and illicit brews. This problem has become rampant in Kenya, and it has ruined our young generation. If we are not careful, we will not have future generation in Kenya. That is where the problem is. If gambling is not censored, it will become problematic. Once upon a time when I used to teach at the university, one would walk into a lecture room and find it empty because the students were busy gambling. Most of them wasted school fees that they were given by their parents. Most of them sold everything they owned, including their college possessions, for the sake of gambling. We would see parents coming to graduation ceremonies hoping that their children were on the graduation list only to find that they had dropped out because they were not paying fees and had never been to classes because they were gambling. The problem comes about when gambling becomes an addiction. We have seen cases where young people have more than 20 Subscriber Information Module (SIM) cards because they get small loans from Fuliza to gamble. Is that not a problem? Gambling has to be regulated before it escalates into an addiction, especially for our youths. When they start participating in gambling, they lose concentration. Others drop out of schools and others become petty thieves because they want to get little money. We have heard stories of young people taking money from their parents’ phones, and many other stories which are not very good for our society. This business should be regulated. It is not enough to tax them because that would look like we are legitimising the business. We have to regulate them in such a way that we can censor and make sure that people who participate in gambling are of a given age group. We should enact clear regulations on how the game should be managed. I represent a blend of both rural and urban constituency and you find that in the urban side of my constituency, there are too many gambling centres. People are reaping from very young people. We have had relationships breaking up because the money which is supposed to cater for families has been diverted to other things like gambling. In my view, this is a very good Motion. We should look at it critically and ensure that we only delete whatever is irrelevant and destructive. However, we should ensure that the regulator is serious. They should not just regulate anybody or give a licence to anyone because they want to be in business or make money. An example is the alcohol and drug abuse regulating organisations in our society. You will find that some county governments hastily give business licences regardless of the kind of alcohol one is selling. Some people get licences and then go ahead to sell illicit brews. Eventually, people get addicted and it"
}