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{
    "id": 1564151,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1564151/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 271,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Abass",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13587,
        "legal_name": "Abass Sheikh Mohamed",
        "slug": "abass-sheikh"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Speaker, first and foremost, I want to applaud Sen. Eddy who is one of the youngest Senators. I am sure he felt the need to support the creative arts. I thank him for bringing this good Bill which everybody should appreciate. Kenya is a diverse country full of contrast. When you attend music and drama festivals where our school children participate, that is the only time you feel that this country is rich in creative arts. When you see the young girls and boys in schools presenting the ideas that they get from their teachers, you will see that there is need to support those ideas and build on them, so that those small minds that have come up with those kinds of creative arts are supported. Today, in the United States of America (USA) and Europe, there are so many Africans who have been given scholarships because of having that kind of creative thinking, and sports. However, in a country like Kenya, with all its beautiful diversity and arts available within our rich society, some of our young, and talented people, sportsmen and women, are going to become citizens in the Arab land and Rwanda, simply because we do not appreciate them. Probably, we have plenty of them, such that, we do not see the necessity of having this. Madam Temporary Speaker, creative arts encompass a lot of things in human activities. It encompasses imaginations, expressions, arts, history, among other things. If this is actually conserved and preserved, that is going to be an intellectual issue that can be referred for any purpose. If you go Maasai Mara, for instance, you see white men and foreigners coming and they appreciate the attires that our Maasai sisters and men wear. In Europe, or the big hotels, for instance, you will see people wearing the Masa i Shuka, and it is actually even sold at expensive prices. However, in Kenya, we do not even appreciate that. Instead, we say it is backwardness and barbaric to have these kinds of cultures. It is not so. So, it is high time that we support the creative economy. Madam Temporary Speaker, in the past, we used to have a Department of Culture and Social Services. That was a very strong institution. They used to support the creative arts. There used to be competitions in schools and in traditional dances, celebrating every public holidays. They used to come from every corner of Kenya. However, these days, people are called from the slums, and given one minute to dance, and thereafter you talk about speech and political issues. It is high that time need to move forward and at least be able to appreciate it. Madam Temporary Speaker, most of our cultural ambassadors and creatives are wallowing in poverty. The likes of Mama Kayai and her team of Vioja Mahakani are wallowing in poverty. They have nowhere to run to. They have nobody to support them. If this kind of economic support for the creative arts group can be done, this country will move forward, and we will appreciate those people who teach our young ones. In the era of TikTok, instead of our children thinking about creatives and our cultures, they are just seeing dirty things and spending most of their time looking at TikTok’s, naked women, and obscene things. However, if our traditions are aired on television, and the media in general... 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."
}