Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 1618629,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1618629/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 56,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Wajir East, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Aden Mohammed",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Hon. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 44(2)(c), I rise to request for a Statement on the scope of immigration services at Wajir International Airport. Wajir International Airport was designated as an international airport, a status that signifies its capability to handle and process international flights, passengers and cargo. Subsequently, the Department of Immigration Services posted a Deputy Director, two Assistant Directors and two Principal Immigration Officers to take charge of the clearance of travellers entering the territory of Kenya via the Wajir International Airport. Despite the deployment of immigration officers, passengers, including Kenyans returning home via Wajir International Airport, are not cleared at that airport. Instead, the immigration officers only check passengers' documents against aircraft manifests. Passengers then re-board the flights and are subsequently rerouted to the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi for admission. Hon. Speaker, this practise, which has been ongoing since 2020, exposes passengers to double verification and unnecessary costs, particularly for residents of Wajir and neighbouring counties who land at Wajir International Airport, and instead of being admitted by the immigration officers, they are flown to Nairobi for admission. This forces them to incur costs for domestic flights back to the northern region. Curiously, while all other passengers including Kenyans are rerouted to JKIA for admission, certain passengers claimed to be soldiers and intelligence officers from the United States of America (USA) are cleared and admitted into Kenya at Wajir International Airport, raising concerns on the preferential treatment accorded to them. Hon. Speaker, it is against this background that I request the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security to apprise the House on the following: 1. The justification for an immigration desk at Wajir International Airport undertaking only clerical verification of passengers' documents and rerouting flights to JKIA, instead of concluding the clearance and admission process at Wajir International Airport. 2. The reason for admission of foreign forces upon landing at Wajir International Airport from where they proceed to Wajir Military Base, while all other passengers, including Kenyans returning home in the north, are rerouted to JKIA for immigration services. 3. Clarification on the nature of the assignment of these foreign soldiers and security officers at Wajir Military Base and the framework for their presence in Kenya. 4. The measures put in place to ensure fair and conclusive immigration treatment for passengers arriving in Kenya via Wajir International Airport as the first port of entry. Hon. Speaker, because this Statement concerns both the Immigration Department and the Military, I request it to go to both the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security and Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations. I thank you, Hon. Speaker."
}