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{
    "id": 1373752,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1373752/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 259,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Homa Bay County, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Atieno Bensuda",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "the County Member of Parliament for Homa Bay, I rise to represent the Persons with Disabilities (PWD), but there is nowhere they are mentioned. I add that inclusivity is not captured in the proposed Bill because there is nowhere in the Bill where unemployed youths and women, and the PWDs are included. The framework on inclusivity is missing in this proposed Bill. It was very clear that this is a county Bill and I agree. In the same Constitution, there is the interrelatedness of the county governments and the national Government. That is not clearly articulated in this proposed Bill as we can see in the Fourth Schedule under the aspect of the ownership and the board of management where we are sneaking in the Cabinet Secretary and the CEO, who I do not know the identification mechanism. We have 47 counties in this country and the framework of identification of the pieces of land is not articulated. We are talking about public participation which is purported to have taken place. We know the segments of a public participation. Was there adequacy in the notice that was provided? Was there involvement of adequate stakeholder and inclusivity of the same? Was it at the local level of the beneficiary who is going to get it? We only saw a spotted flashlight piece of news on the television where some people were seated with good bottles of water somewhere. Are we talking about affordable houses for mama mboga or we are just imagining of things that are not right? This House must hold and respect the court order. This process was already stopped. It was important and necessary that we be firm as legislators, an arm of the Government, so that we review what we want to bring in place, because once we rush it, and then take it to the Senate for corroboration, that is wrong and misleading. I also want to highlight that there is prioritisation of needs. Why I am mentioning this? What is this rush about affordable housing yet this country should address important issues such as education. As I speak, we know very well that our education is in a total mess. If we are a Government that prioritises needs of Kenyans, why can we not look at issues which are weighty such that if we tell Kenyans that these taxes are going to go to this kind of development, there will be improvement in the country? We have issues of water and electricity. What is this rush on affordable housing? Teachers have taken loans and acquired houses; people have built houses in various towns and gone back home. There is no framework on which a mama mboga is going to acquire a house; there is no framework on how the unemployed bodaboda and the youth are going to acquire these houses. Housing is not a priority. Some households are living in grass-thatched houses, but they are doing businesses and affording to take their children to school. Let us support them. It would be wrong and illegal for this House to accept, propose and pass this Bill unless we want to take Kenyans into rush. It is about a small population of people who own companies in the steel industry in this country. In Nairobi, most of these industries are owned by the Asians and the Chinese. Africans are few in this sector. Who is going to import timber from Congo? I urge this Government to tap the underutilised resources from our counties, bring in investors, pour in and look for grants to ensure that in as much as affordable housing is moving on, resources are revived so that there is sustainability and increased funding in terms of improving our cost of living and economic status. In Homa Bay, we have a lake and, therefore, bring us industries. Do not open up fishponds in places where there are no lakes so that we have fish which is not authentic yet we have fish in the lake. Let us have things which can sustain our locals where they are. We have forests which can be tapped for tourism and many things that we can do. Even the people who are employed in the private sectors, if you observe them during lunch time, they appear very hungry. They take githeri for Ksh10 because they are underpaid yet we are talking about building houses immediately, bring in steel and bring in timber. Where do we want to bring these from? The Kenyan is un-empowered. 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"
}