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"legal_name": "Eugene Ludovic Wamalwa",
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"content": "Thank you very much, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir. I beg to second this very important Motion. I want to congratulate hon. Kaino for bringing this very important Motion. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, this morning, we had several hon. Members actually touching on the issue of cattle rustling. We had a Question from hon. Pesa from Migori. We also had one from hon. Letimalo from Samburu East. Hon. Kutuny and several hon. Members of this House raised issues touching on cattle rustling. That means that this is an issue of a national nature. It is not restricted to a region. It is prevalent in Trans Nzoia, Migori, Samburu and Turkana. Cattle rustling is a real menace to the security of this nation! Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, you will remember that, not long ago, hon. Ethuro moved a Motion for Adjournment here to discuss the situation that occurred in Turkana, where almost 40 people lost their lives. There was a serious attack on that part of Kenya and almost 700 animals were stolen. It was a matter that touched this nation. It has happened severally in Baringo and Kwanza - where Dr. Wekesa is the Member of Parliament. I think that lately, it has not been as bad as in the past, but we have suffered in Trans Nzoia and in other parts of Kenya. This is a matter that we must look into, so that we can find real solutions! It is a matter that is perennial in nature. It is as perennial as the floods in Budalangi and other parts of Kenya. What we need is to really look at the root causes of cattle rustling. To do so, we need to understand the history. It is a problem which is as old as this nation. We need a team that will actually study, diagnose and make a prognosis of the problem of cattle rustling. It is, therefore, very important to set up a Select Committee of this House. We request the Government to give it the necessary facilitation and support, so that it can address the root cause of that very perennial problem. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, you will appreciate that Kenya is faced with many problems, and cattle rustling is one of them. We have a problem of high food prices. We were discussing it today. We are looking at how to respond or deal with situations as they arise. But we are not really going to the root cause. Why are Kenyans going hungry today? Why have Kenyans resorted to cattle rustling? It is because of the high cost of food! People are actually willing to steal animals and sell them. It is big business! It is no longer a traditional thing! Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, a kilogramme of meat in Nairobi is about Kshs300! I believe some hon. Members who partake of nyama choma will agree that, indeed, the price of beef is very high. For people to actually engage in cattle rustling, they are not doing it as a hobby or as a tradition! It is actually big business because they are selling the cattle straight to the butcheries and are given ready cash. It is something that we need to study very carefully. But, also, we need to get to the root cause of the problem. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, as I was saying, we have had that problem in this 4002 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES December 10, 2008 nation because we do not address the root causes. Right now, because of the high food prices, we have introduced a temporary measure where we have maize meal being sold to the poor at Kshs52 and to the rich at Kshs72. What we are creating, and we have already been told that Kenya is one of the nations with the biggest gap between the rich and the poor, is a bigger gap. We need to do something to address that problem by actually setting up a team that will go around the country, visit the archives of history and come up with a way forward. We want to support hon. Kaino for coming up with this list. We have looked at the list and the hon. Members in it are representative of the face of Kenya. We believe that it is a team that will be up to task. It will come up with a solution that will deal with that problem. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, because of time, with those few remarks, I beg to second this Motion."
}