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{
"id": 1444371,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1444371/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Mungatana, MGH",
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"content": "Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I would like to start by thanking Sen. Veronica Maina for bringing these amendments on the Law of Succession Act. Many of us who are practitioners of the law have grappled with these difficulties. I know Sen. Veronica Maina is also a practitioner of the law. I am happy to see that she has used her experience of many years to try and resolve issues that we face all the time in succession courts. When unfortunate things like death of both parents in a road accident or a plane crash occur and they have children who are expecting them to go back home in the evening, but all of a sudden, they do not have parents. They wake up in the morning with both parents, but they become orphans in the evening. These are real issues that I have personally dealt with in my law firm. How do you protect those children? In the morning, the children were under the protection of both parents. In the evening, there is a plane crash and they are waiting for their parents, but nobody is going home. There is intermeddling that we are talking about, which has been introduced here. Children find themselves completely exposed. Unfortunately, some of the relatives who may not have a lot of goodwill for these children come and remove them from their property. Many times, they tell them, ‘you come and live with auntie or with uncle.’ However, the intention is to work their way through to get the property that was entitled to those children. I know of a case of a very successful couple that lost their lives together and we have had to really look after those children until now. Now, they are grown children and have come into their parents' property. However, assuming that their parents had not planned for eventualities like those, and just like most ordinary Kenyans, they live believing that they will attain the age of 80 or 75, and then something like that happens, the children become extremely exposed. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I am standing not only to support this Bill, but to use the Floor of this House to speak to those Kenyans who are listening to me. The time has come, and in these modern times, we must do two things. We must learn to file our Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) returns every year. At the same time, we must learn to list what we have for that year and update the will that we have. You and your wife must keep thinking about these kinds of eventualities. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, it is very much un-African to think that you are going to die or to talk about death. In some of our communities, it is actually a taboo to discuss your own death or plan your own death. That is why it always makes news when someone says, ‘when I die, this is the grave that I am digging for myself, this is the casket that you are going to use and this is the way I want to be buried.’ Ordinarily, this is not very African. However, I am standing on this Floor of this House to tell Kenyans that the time has come and as you file your returns, also look at what you have. Sit down; have a business meeting with your wife, or your partner or 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."
}