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{
    "id": 1474387,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1474387/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 289,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cherarkey",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13217,
        "legal_name": "Cherarkey K Samson",
        "slug": "cherarkey-k-samson"
    },
    "content": "unfortunate that we lost those lives in May, 2018 when that unfortunate disaster happened in Nakuru County. These are challenges that we should learn from. I am happy there is a legal framework in terms of disaster management going into the future. Additionally, even at that time, we lost more than 45 Kenyans. Schools and homes were destroyed. As a Committee that followed up on the implementation, the people of Solai Dam Tragedy up to today have nightmares. When they hear even a tyre burst, they always get scared. Therefore, as we pay them off, we should ensure we have counselling services. Madam Temporary Speaker, when I had the opportunity of visiting Brazil with the Committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations then, there was a case of Brumadinho, collapse of dam in the State of Minas Gerais, in Brazil. Apart from being impressed with other things in Brazil, I was impressed by the disaster preparedness of that country. Within 20 seconds, almost a hundred choppers had been mobilised after the collapse of Brumadinho Dam, where 270 people died in that Brumadinho Disaster. When we visited Brazil two or three months down the line, we found the responders were still on the ground collecting every bone of anybody who lost their lives in Brumadinho. The way the response was organised was of master class. At that time, the state prosecutor of Brazil had already fined the owners of that sludge US dollars 7 billion and the owners were still in court. The other day in the same incident of Brumadinho Dam collapse in the State of Minas Gerais in Brazil, the courts have also fined through the union, because the indirect contracted of that dam had not been compensated. They have even fined the same owners over US dollars 200 billion and yet the owners are still being prosecuted by the state prosecutor. That is when the rule of law is functional. Apart from compensating families, the prosecutor has also pushed the owners of Brumadinho Dam to do environmental regeneration to ensure the environment is left better than it was before the destruction by the Brumadinho Dam. We have failed to do this in Solai Dam in Nakuru County. I am happy with this national authority in terms of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Through this Authority, we are able to ensure that anybody who is found out of criminal negligence is held liable. The Ad Hoc Committee of the Senate, and I do not know whether Sen. M. Kajwang’’ was part of it, found that the owners of Patel Dam or the Solai Dam were criminally liable. I am happy although I hope the Attorney General will appeal that matter. We need to give harsher penalties, because we know there are many people who own ranches and dams that have not been certified. There is what we call the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) and we need to know their role. We have the Kenya Water Towers Agency. What are they doing when they approve the building of small dams and ponds? What is their role? We know when we had heavy rains, most of the dams in the country were over flowing. However, what is the National Water Harvesting Authority doing, so that when these dams and ponds are over flowing with water, they might not affect the lives of people? We saw another form of pandemic called COVID-19 pandemic. If you may recall, at the Senate Committee at that time, there were allegations that more than US dollars7.8 The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only.A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and Audio Services,Senate."
}