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"content": "Hon. Temporary Speaker, I was waiting for the point at which the Majority Leader utters the words that he has finished with, thanking the nominating party for bringing such a brilliant individual to represent persons with disabilities. Of course, the record of this House will show that the ODM Party continues to be extremely proud of the nomination of Sen. Crystal Asige. She has demonstrated an understanding of the issues of the people that she represents that has widened our perspective and understanding of the issues facing persons living with disability in this county. Allow me to start with an often repeated adage in this House, that the National Assembly is a place where Senate Bills go to die. For the very first time, and maybe Crystal will be sharing the magic, because if you look at our Order Paper, we have many more Bills that that will require the input of the National Assembly. For the very first time, we can see, first of all, a very positive reception of ideas that have originated from this House, and secondly, an action by the National Assembly to actually enrich the proposals that we have met in this Senate. So, I want to say that I support the amendments by the National Assembly. There are three specific clauses that have been introduced by the National Assembly that I wanted to speak to. First of all, there is an amendment that appears as Clause 26, which deletes subclause (1) and substitutes the subclause with the right to freedom of expression and opinion, including the freedom to seek, receive and impart information, ideas and the right to access information on the equal basis with others in a timely manner and without additional cost. I believe this is something that Sen. Crystal wrote herself, as it aligns with the challenges she has presented to the Secretariat since the start of this Session. From accessing basic items such as the Order Paper to her persistent reminders to this House about her inability to view the content shared in the group in the manner it is presented to others. I am certain that Sen. Crystal wove into the Bill herself, ensuring she could access information in the same manner as Sifuna and other able-bodied Senators in this House do, and in a timely fashion. Too often, debates would begin only for someone to realize that the information needed to be adapted into a format that Crystal could access. I am also certain there were additional costs incurred in making this information accessible. Hon. Temporary Speaker, allow me to mention that during my December meeting with Community Health Promoters (CHPs) in Nairobi, I had the privilege of meeting a Very Important Person (VIP) named Angela. I had promised to arrange a meeting 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."
}