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{
    "id": 1417918,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1417918/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 345,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Tigania West, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) John K. Mutunga",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for the opportunity to support this Motion. Today, we are discussing a very important category of Kenyans. People who have no option other than offer caregiving services and cannot run away from it. It looks like when we think about anything, we believe the Government should support. Our friends in the Opposition, especially the Member who spoke before the Member for Kirinyaga County, believes that anything the Government does is wrong and it is mistreating people. That is a wrong way of approaching politics. We understand there are three arms of Government; the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary. So, he is Government and we are also Government in this House. We only have the Majority Party and Minority Party sides. Caregivers are people who must give assistance and support to others in need because they are incapacitated in one way or another. It is important to note that caregivers have absolutely no option other than live with the people they support yet they live in this country under the same economic and weather conditions like us. They need to live a happy life as well and have needs which must be met in one way or another. Somehow, they have been surviving all along, probably, through the assistance the Government gives to PWSDs. So, they need a safety net because they also have needs. Sometimes, caregivers hide their kin living with disability. The reason being that circumstances are too demanding that they must go and fend for their own survival. Therefore, they do not declare the situation of their kin. We need to alleviate caregivers from such situations and help them to live a normal life and be encouraged to support PWSDs by holding their hands, cleaning, and preparing food for them. Having said that, let us look at the Government which is targeted to assist in everything. When we talk about it raising revenue, we hear a lot of noise especially from the Opposition. The Government is bombarded with every need. Yes, we realise the importance of supporting anything which needs support, but this Government needs to raise revenue. We are saying that it should not borrow money so as to reduce the extent to which it is committing this country to other countries yet we must be in a position to take care of all these needs. Caregivers have to live with PWSDs but sometimes they are unable. Also, some cases are very demanding that caregivers are unable to fend for themselves. Some may be very poor and need to be salvaged from poverty. An additional burden of having a person with a disability in a homestead means further impoverishment. That is, probably, one of the key reasons the sponsor of this Motion brought it here. Hon. Temporary Speaker, we have various types of disabilities like mental disability which may lead to a person being contained. Containment measures require almost 100 per cent surveillance and extra hands from a person who is tied up and cannot fend for themselves. Others have physical disabilities and may need to be moved from one place to another or assistance in various ways. Therefore, the caregivers time is tied up. Others may have visual disabilities requiring them to be guided when going somewhere. Different types of disabilities demand for the attention of the caregivers who have not applied to be in that situation. They just found themselves there naturally. That is why we need to look into this problem. We need to consider caregivers in as much as we are trying to support PWSDs and look at how we can encourage them by supporting their livelihood, therefore, improving their living standards. Financial instability is common in this country. We cannot assume that somebody who spends most of their time caregiving is earning a living. So, it is important for us to look at how we can support them. Somebody may ask: “How do we get to know who the caregivers are?”. Sometimes one may wonder whether it is parents, a brother or a sister. There is need for thorough scrutiny of 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"
}