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{
    "id": 1233651,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1233651/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 140,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Alego Usonga, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Samuel Atandi",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker, for the opportunity to speak on this Motion. The Fish Marketing Authority is a very important authority for the fishing sector. Unfortunately, it has no role because Kenya produces about 400,000 tonnes of fish against the consumption of about 600,000 tonnes and so, the marketing authority has no role because we do not have any fish to market. However, I want to support the appointment of Hon. Ogindo. We have a culture in this House of not opposing our former colleagues who are given jobs. That is the only condition on which I want to support this appointment of Hon. Ogindo. I think he is a person who is capable of performing this responsibility. Unfortunately, he is consumed in the politics of political parties. I want to urge him from this Floor that once he is given this job, he desists from playing party politics in the region and lays focus on this responsibility. What I also want to say is that, for the benefit of this House, I am sponsoring a Bill to introduce an excise tax on imported fish. This is very important because we have all these authorities and bodies that are supposed to help us in making fishing a profitable sector in this country. This is not happening because we are not investing a lot of resources in the fishing sector. I intend to introduce this in the upcoming Finance Bill and I urge Members to support me so that we tax the imported fish coming from China and all these other countries. We do not need to import fish. The fishing sector is very profitable and it can help this country create jobs and balance foreign exchange. Right now we have a problem with dollars because everything is imported, including things that we can produce locally. I would like to urge the House to support my tax proposals when they come before this House to raise taxes on fish imports. Fundamentally, we need to invest more resources in the fishing industry, create more jobs and make the sector profitable. Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker."
}