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{
    "id": 1409439,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1409439/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 222,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nyando, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Jared Okello",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. I have two issues that I want to quickly run by you. First, recognising that we are going on recess today, I raised a question as regards the remission of funds for political parties to the Registrar of Political Parties, who should then cascade them to political parties on a pro-rata basis. I remember you gave the Leader of the Majority Party the task of talking to the National Treasury and to give us a report. I hope the report is ready now that we shall be out for a month. Secondly, and most important thing to me, Hon. Speaker, you are the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Service Commission with the mandate of ensuring the welfare and comfort of Members of this House. I am concerned about the relationship between this House and the Executive, particularly as regards sitting arrangements during State functions. While I do not attend presidential functions for obvious reasons, a fortnight ago, I happened to attend the burial of the Chief of the Defence Forces (CDF), my brother and friend, General Francis Ogolla, who has substantively been replaced this morning. Hon. Speaker, I know that Cabinet Secretaries depend on this House to get jobs. However, I was disturbed that Members of Parliament were literally scrambling for seats close to where the President was. My brother, Hon. Ruku, who I believe is the tallest man in this House, had to stand for five minutes. I had to cede my seat to Hon. Ruku. It is permissible for me to stand and look for a seat, but it becomes very embarrassing when Hon. Ruku, who has a height of 7.2 feet, is looking for a seat. One thing that I cannot properly wrap my head around is whether it is Government policy that no one accords seats to Members of Parliament and yet, Cabinet Secretaries have all the latitude and seats marked with their names. Members of Parliament must literally suffer trying to locate seats. Hon. Speaker, I implore you as our Chairperson to find out whether something can be done in this respect because Members of Parliament play a very important role. We literally depend on the charity of our voters to get into this House. A Cabinet Secretary only needs one person to appoint him/her to that office. We are subjected to inordinate embarrassment before the public when we have to beg for seats. Hon. Ruku can bear witness that I had to cede my seat for his sake."
}