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{
    "id": 1508013,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1508013/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 768,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Aldai, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Marianne Kitany",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "I am also happy that we are now looking at the Start-Up Bill. This will help many of those young investors, who may find a threat from the foreign investors, to get an opportunity where they can get incentives like tax rebates. That will help our local investments to grow and our young people to invest in this country. So, the Report that we have done as a Committee looks at those unfair trade practices that have been occasioned by various legislations in this country. The business laws, for example, the Companies Act, 2015, do not restrict the businesses that come in or register in this country in terms of the kind of businesses that they are supposed to operate. Therefore, some of the amendments and recommendations that the Committee was looking at is that, as KenInvest looks at amending their law, we could also look at further amending the Companies Act, 2015 to protect our local investors. So, this Report has come in handy, and it could not have come at a better time than now, when many of our investors are crying and many businesses in this country have closed down because of unfair competition from the multi-nationals in the country. A good example of those unfair trade practises that have come in include, the China Square and Starlink. Safaricom complained that, that investor has come with a huge muscle, and he will compete unfairly with the local businesses that have already entrenched themselves. Safaricom employs very many people. If such companies are not checked, as a country, we may end up having jobs losses, loss of business opportunities and loss of revenue. That is because many of those investors repatriate their profits back to their country. As a Committee, we support this Report. We ask that the laws that need to be amended to protect young businesses and the local traders in this country be fast-tracked. This will ensure that the local investors in the country can freely run their businesses without any issues of unfair practises. Hon. Temporary Speaker, during our investigations, there were issues to do with counterfeiting and anti-counterfeiting, and we found out that many foreign investors bring in products that, perhaps, could be counterfeited. The products do not become competitive in our market because we are killing industries even in the countries where those products come from. Kenya, therefore, ends up being a dumping site. That is what we need to protect so that, as a country, we do not become a dumping site and end up breaking the international laws that we have ratified in terms of dumping and counterfeiting of products. That is another area that came up and we felt that the legislation, specifically under the Standards Act, needs to be further enhanced. This would ensure that all products that come in, fit into requirements under the international standards, thereby ensuring that the products are not counterfeited. I support and beg to second this Motion. Thank you."
}