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{
    "id": 1476908,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1476908/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 230,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Osotsi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13588,
        "legal_name": "Osotsi Godfrey Otieno",
        "slug": "osotsi-godfrey-otieno"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for the opportunity to also make my contribution on the Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Bill (Senate Bills No.53 of 2023) that is being sponsored by Sen. Mariam Omar. I start by thanking her for bringing this very important piece of legislation for consideration by this House. Sen. Mariam Omar, you have really tried to bring issue-based legislation in this House. This has just been one of the many legislations you have brought in this House. As it has been said, co-operatives are key vehicles in promoting economic growth in any country. Many of us here have done a lot of things such as investments, and even paying fees for our children or ourselves using cooperatives. There are good and bad stories that we tell about co-operatives. However, this particular legislation is very important because you know that co-operative societies under the Fourth Schedule, are devolved. This particular parent Act; the Cooperative Society Act, 1997, is long overdue. It is important that the parent Act be overhauled. I respect the work of Sen. Mariam Omar, but I also suggest and think it is high time that the entire Act be overhauled to align it with the current realities and the Constitution of Kenya, 2010. I have heard the new Cabinet Secretary for Co-operatives and Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Development talk passionately about the need to repeal the Cooperative Society Act 1997 to ensure that it is aligned to the realities of our current times and Constitution. This particular Bill is comprehensive, but it only captures what we call primary societies, how they are registered and managed and the policies around them. It goes slightly further to talk about other levels of co-operatives such as co-operative unions and apex societies. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, this Bill recommends that the governance, registration and licensing of primary co-operative societies should be overseen by county governments. It proposes to have a county director in charge of co-operatives, who will perform those functions under the relevant CECM. It leaves the national Government to handle matters of national policy and apex societies and co-operative unions. Whereas I support that, as I said earlier, it is important to relook at the entire parent Act, which, in my view, is outdated and needs to be aligned. As we do that, we should factor in primary societies and also look at ways of improving the functioning and management of co-operative unions and apex societies. We have read and seen in the news that the Kenya Union of Savings and Credit Co-operatives (KUSCCO), a well-known apex society in this country, has serious management issues. You wonder why action has not been taken against the management and the committee responsible. We should not have a situation where members’ money is lost because of fraud, corruption or mismanagement. That is why I said we need to overhaul the entire Co- operative Societies Act, so that we look at issues of governance, corruption and all that. In New Clause 2A, the Senator is proposing that persons involved in running a co-operative society must be guided by a number of principles. However, I cannot see two important principles in the list of principles provided. The first one is accountability. 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."
}