Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 1373453,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1373453/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 275,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Laikipia East, TSP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Mwangi Kiunjuri",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "been in the system. Even in the Bible, 1 Timothy Chapter 3 and Acts Chapter 15 recognise them as spiritual overseers of the flock. That means they are also recognised religiously. I hope there are elders who work for their people even in the Quran. These are people who are full of wisdom, are respected in the society, are problem- solvers, and who resolve conflicts in the villages. Their role is already established. It is not that we are looking for jobs for them to do. We are not establishing any parallel system that will conflict with any existing system. Currently, county governments have their own systems of administration, and so does the national Government. When the national Government wants to collect intelligence and information, they do not rely on chiefs, they rely on village elders. Village elders give counsel and guidance, and work closely with sub-chiefs and chiefs. Therefore, their role already exists and is well-established. We only ask that their roles be streamlined because they have suffered enough. Why should somebody help you and work for you yet you are not ready to give them anything in return? That can only translate to slavery. Why do you want to exploit them? The culture of exploitation must come to an end. Do we have systems that can take care of them? Yes, we already have established systems in the intelligence and national security sectors, where we have National Police Reservists who are picked from villages and are paid. We also have the Social Protection Fund which works and people are paid. You do not have to attain the age of 60 to be a village elder. You can become one even at the age of 35 or 40. We look at how respected you are in society and your level of wisdom. We must look at the parameters for recruiting village elders since immediately we streamline the process, corruption will come in. It will now be an issue of who is looking for a job and not consideration of those who have been serving the community. That must be clearly observed. When we start employing village elders or giving them stipends to show appreciation, corruption should not set in. The existing traditions on how to pick village elders and giving priority to those who have been serving the community should be preferred. That will not be the time to start firing those who have been serving the community because a certain person wants his brother, sister or supporters to serve as village elders. Issues of costs and the role that they will play should not arise. It is an issue of recognising and realising that they have been exploited for a very long time. If you go to villages, you will find that conflict resolution, even in churches, is done by village elders. Established systems recognise their existence. It is high time we agreed that they exist, and accept them as teachers, counsellors, and conflict-resolvers. Therefore, they must be given the respect that they deserve and accorded dignity. It is high time Parliament resolves to recognise them and speeds up the consideration of this amendment Bill so that it is enacted. Budgets should not be an issue bearing in mind the amount of money that intelligence services use every day to collect information. They have a budget. There are many areas where we can reduce the allocation and ensure that we pay village elders. With those few remarks, I beg to support the Bill."
}