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{
    "id": 1519906,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1519906/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 295,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nominated, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Irene Mayaka",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. I join my colleagues in congratulating the Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga for conducting himself as the true Pan-Africanist that he is, and for offering himself for the African Union Commission (AUC) Chairperson position. The Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga is one of those people who are very resilient. When we were in Addis Ababa, feeling very sad about this particular loss, he spoke to us while smiling and assuring us that it was not the end of the world. I really want to salute him for that. I also take this opportunity to thank the President, His Excellency (Dr) William Samoei Ruto, for leading the campaign on behalf of Kenya. Truly, what the President did was magnanimous. His efforts, going across the whole of Africa and hosting us at State House to launch the campaign for the Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga, is something that, as young people, we will never forget. We want to thank him for that. Hon. CPA Kimani Kuria alluded to the fact that many of us have been beneficiaries of the Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga through mentorship. If you notice, on my right hand, I always wear two wristbands. One is the Kenyan wristband for my patriotism, and the other one is a blue wristband with the initials ‘‘D.O.R.’’, which stands for Daughters of Raila. I wear it because I am one of the beneficiaries of the mentorship of a great statesman of this country. The Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga did not see me as the daughter of so-and-so. He saw me as a young girl who was passionate about politics, and who wanted to be in this space. He mentored me to get to where I am. It saddened and disgusted me when I saw so many other young people on social media trying to castigate the candidature of the Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga. I want to say that we are also at fault because we do not educate our young people about the history of some of the great Kenyans we have. They need to be told that when a Kenyan is out there competing for a position, we must put aside our tribal cards and stand up for him or her. I want to tell the people who were celebrating this loss in Nyeri that it was a show of lack of patriotism. We should not be allowing such actions as a country. As we introspect and look at Kenya’s role in Africa, and even as we congratulate Djibouti for winning this particular contest, I want to say that Africa lost an opportunity to be led by a great man and a Pan-Africanist who would have taken this continent to the next level."
}