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"content": "Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I stand corrected. As late as about five years ago, the ratio of computers to children in schools was 1:1,200. We cannot have an economic propulsion by having our children imagining what computers look like. They need to be taught in schools. Information and Communication Technology has become such a crucial ingredient in our day to day life. That is now very important. In saying this, I also want to acknowledge that the Government is on the right path. I was very impressed today. I passed through the dark sides of Kawangware and I saw an ICT cable passing through the slums. That is good, but it would be better if schools take computerisation seriously. I support what the Minister has said. Most of us who have been to courts--- Hon. Members will remember that I was there in a very big funfair. We all know that evidence from a video could not be admitted. No evidence from any electronic media, including Short Messaging Service (SMS) text could be accepted. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to support this Bill, but at the same time, I want the Government, particularly the Minister, to take note that we can also mortgage ourselves through this modern technology. A lot of things can happen within minutes. You will recall that in 1990, the first banking fraud for Kshs70 million in one of the local banks was executed by a computer wizard. During that time, even bank managers did not know what computerisation was all about. So, unless we look into this, including Parliament Buildings, which is yet to computerise--- Those of us who have offices at Continental House know that the computers can hang for November 13, 2008 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 3513 up to six hours before you can even be able to access the website. If you look at how Members of Parliament in other Parliaments vote and compare with this Chamber, the story is completely different. We need to take ICT more seriously. We need to pass this Bill very fast, if it will help us to move forward, at least, one step. I cannot fail to mention and acknowledge that when Bill Clinton was elected the President of the United States of America (USA), there were only 50 active websites in the USA. By the time he left office, the USA had a whooping 50 million interactive websites. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we would like to see the Grand Coalition Government not only doing clean politicking, but also very well informed and very much up to date in terms of ICT. In 1986, we bought three computers, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Those computers were monochromes. The white man who came as an expatriate was charging Kshs25,000 every week to go and service them in Nairobi. He would say that they were too dusty and too hot, and they needed air condition and the rest of it. You can imagine the kind of ordeal we went through. We were using monochromes, which had to be serviced weekly for Kshs25,000 then. That is the equivalent of about Kshs100,000 today. That is because of the dust and the rest of it. Our ignorance costed us millions of shillings then. We do not want our children to come on and spend their life time sorting out problems that we can sort out now. I am saying that because the Ministry of Education had a programme through which it was to buy computers for schools. However, if you look at it, you will see that the programme is over-costed, bloated and unserviceable. We need a Ministry that is conscious of the needs of Kenyans and knows what our children require. We need a Ministry which is, really, devoid of commercialisation, to come and deal with ICT matters. It is a bit offending when you imagine that you cannot computerise a Maasai manyatta or something like that, while as we know, a computer today can be powered easily by a solar panel, even inside a Maasai manyatta . The fact that they do not have electricity or decent housing should not be a reason to deny them that essential tool. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, let ICT not be a white man's job any more. Our children are doing very well. India is leading in making computer software, particularly in the area of medicine. Now, there is what they call \"call centres\". I am glad that I can see that the Leader of Government Business here. We can have millions of Kenyans employed here in Nairobi and working for firms as far as USA or any other parts of the world, if only we can make the infrastructure. We slackened. I thank the Government, because it thought of Naivasha at that particular time, and we had the first ground satellite link. Had we gone further, we could be having our young men working in those call centres. That is the way to go. Therefore, I hope that sooner or later, without a lot of talking, we are going to have a country that is completely and absolutely ICT compliant, and in harmony with the entire world. With those remarks, I beg to support."
}