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"speaker_name": "Mr. Muthama",
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"legal_name": "Johnson Nduya Muthama",
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"content": "Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Vote of the Ministry of Agriculture, which is a very important Ministry in our country. It is a Ministry which the livelihoods of Kenyans depend on. As we all know, food provides national security, and that needs a lot of seriousness. Farmers of this country have suffered under extremely difficult conditions, and due to that, the common mwanachi has continued to suffer. This country has been unable to produce enough food for the people. Since Independence in 1963, we have been struggling to feed our people. We have imported food, borrowed and begged other countries to assist us with food. 3052 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES October 28, 2008 You will be in agreement with me, and I say this on behalf of all Kenyans, that a country that cannot feed its citizens is a country that can be regarded as the poorest in the world. We have made many steps in development in different areas but the production of food has completely derailed and affected development in this country. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, Kenyans have fought and killed one another due to land. Kenyans do not just want to sit on it but to produce food. Kenyans believe in food. Every human being in the world will consider their way forward if there is enough food to feed themselves and their family. Kenya, as a country, has failed in that area completely. We have discussed, issued statements and written books, but implementing the theories has been next to impossible. Today, Kenya is a country that can produce coffee. Our coffee is among the best in the world, but the industry has been completely been shut down unceremoniously and quietly. Something somewhere has gone wrong. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, Kangundo Constituency used to produce a lot of coffee. There was a lot of money when coffee was being sold to generate good income for this country. Today, farmers have planted maize, beans and other crops, so that they are able to get food. It is common knowledge that we all have different talents. We have farmers who grow coffee, sell it and it is exported to earn this country foreign currency, which is converted into local currency and paid to farmers who, in turn buy maize and other foodstuffs . This is not the case. Money has been set aside by this Ministry to buy maize and beans, but there is no allocation to coffee or tea farming. If the market in Europe, or overseas, is affected, the farmer in Kenya is affected; there is no programme that has been laid down by the Ministry to rescue that kind of a situation. My kind request to the Minister is that funds must be set aside, and production in this country should not be left in the hands of foreigners to play around with, control, dominate and tell us what to do. They wake up one morning and decide the price of tea or coffee and the Government allows them to market our produce. In this situation, the farmers who grow coffee and tea are paid the lowest price. My kind request to the Minister is that he should set funds aside, so that when the market is accepted in Europe, or overseas, the Ministry should buy and store the farmers' produce and sell it when the price is good. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the backbone of the economy in this country is agriculture. Anybody who thinks otherwise is cheating himself or herself. Regarding the issue of fertiliser, we have talked here, Questions have been asked and there have been promises that prices are going to be brought down, but nothing has taken place. For how long are we going to tell our farmers that the House is still debating the issue, and that the prices are going to be brought down, or that the Government is going to be involved and soon or later, the commodity will be affordable? The issue of fertiliser prices has been a dream. The leadership of this country has denied Kenyans their rights. Today, we are buying mango juice imported from South Africa when our mangoes are rotting. What is the Ministry of Agriculture doing to put in place programmes that will ensure that not only is the produce of Kenyans guarded, but also benefits them. We all know that if Ukambani, some parts of Coast Province, Eastern Province, North Eastern Province and Central Province have enough water, it will be very easy for the Government to supplement the produce that comes from Rift Valley and western Kenya, and this country will have enough food. Where do we get Kshs10 billion when there is drought to import food, and when there is no drought that money is not there? Where does that come from when it cannot be found now and be used to give Kenyans water, so that they can produce their own food. We are sending our children to school on empty tummies. There is no way they will listen October 28, 2008 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 3053 and understand the teacher because they are hungry and are looking for food. The school-feeding programme by the Government is a great shame. The Government gives two bags of maize and one bag of beans to a school, and we are told that the Government has tried its best to feed our children. Four hundred students cannot be fed on two bags of maize and one bag of beans. It is a shame! Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Ministry should come up with a programme. The Government should know that Kenyans are getting tired. I am saying that Kenyans are getting tired up to a point where, sooner or later, they will burn those bags of maize. Those bags of maize do not take them anywhere! We want a proper programme. Kenyans have a right to get it. They deserve it! Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, it does not stop there. With regard to dairy farming, in North Eastern Kenya, we have many animals. When there is a drought, those animals die and farmers lose money. I wonder whether it is extremely difficult, with all the experience we have in this country, for the Ministry to set aside funds and rescue livestock farmers in those areas. The Government can do so by buying the animals, slaughter them and store that meat. It can even sell that meat to Kenyans. Forget about exporting it! Export is also very important and we know that it generates good income for Kenyans. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, with those few remarks, I beg to support."
}