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{
    "id": 1424196,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1424196/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 620,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Mungatana, MGH",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to make my comments on the progress report by the Committee led ably by Sen. Kavindu Muthama. I appreciate the work that the Senator has done so far. I will be very brief. I appreciate that the Chairperson and Sen. Maanzo met with Senator Coons of the USA and made some progress towards settlement for the victims. They have also explained to us the challenge, which is that the US needs to amend its law, so that Kenya can be included amongst the countries that can be compensated using the terrorists frozen assets. To that end, I congratulate the Chairperson of the Ad hoc Committee. I also thank Sen. Maanzo for the efforts they have put so far in doing the work. I have issues with two Ministries. The first one is the Ministry of Health (MoH). According to what the report tells us on page six, the Committee gave direction to the MoH to conduct medical assessment of the victims of the 1998 US Embassy Bombing in Nairobi and submit a report of assessment to the Committee in order to assist them to build their case on compensation of the said victims. The first question is whether the MoH carried out the assessment. It appears that despite the directions that were given to them, so far, they have not submitted medical assessments to the committee to enable them build a case for the victims. It would be embarrassing for the President to engage the US government when he goes on this trip to Washington DC, only to be asked what the MoH in Kenya has done. This document is available to them. If they google, they will find that there was a recommendation to the Ministry to carry out assessment on all the victims of the bombing. All of us agree that the President should put some pressure when he goes on his trip. Here we are asking him to talk about this, yet the Cabinet Secretary for Health has not even given us the assessment for the victims. I want to express my disappointment on that bit because we need to do our part, even as we look forward to the compensation through the efforts of Sen. Kavindu Muthama and her team. We need to tell the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Hon. Nakhumicha, together with the Permanent Secretary (PS) of the Ministry, to provide the assessment, so that when we deal with this matter at that level, we have the facts. These people were also supposed to provide some treatment to the surviving victims. When we ask for compensation, we can provide the assessment and show the assistance we have provided in terms of medical care and other things. We are now requesting the US government to give us compensation, yet the MoH has not lived up to the directions. The other direction that was given by the Committee was that the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection and the National Council for Persons with Disabilities The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
}