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{
    "id": 1265661,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1265661/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 216,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nakuru Town East, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. David Gikaria",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me the opportunity to move the Second Reading of the Penal Code (Amendment) Bill. I come from a constituency that is urban. My constituency has a number of activities that help my constituents to put food on their tables. However, many times the police harass innocent Kenyans who engage in those activities – legal as they may be – to earn a living. My intention is to amend Section 182 of the Penal Code to remove colonial and offensive charges that were put in place during the colonial times. Our Constitution has given freedoms and rights to persons who live in this country. Among the rights is the right to freedom of association and the right to freedom of movement. However, the Penal Code is used by the police to harass Kenyans. The principal object of the Bill is to amend the Penal Code Cap.63 by repealing Section 182 which prescribes the offence of idle and disorderly persons. The law enforcers have often used Section 182 to harass innocent members of the public with offences like loitering. When I checked in the Oxford Dictionary, loitering means moving around without a purpose. Every Kenyan under our Constitution has a right to freedom of movement as long as they do not have bad intentions. However, when the police want to arrest or mop up people in an urban area, the offences that they rush to are in Section 182 of the Penal Code. 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."
}