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"id": 197590,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/197590/?format=api",
"text_counter": 249,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "The Member for Narok North",
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"content": "(Mr. ole Ntimama) Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, at the outset, I want to say that I really support these two Bills - the one on the Constitution and this one on reconciliation. We have seen with our own eyes His Excellency President Kibaki on the other side, and Mr. Raila, the Prime Minister-designate, on this side. We have seen them both speaking here. They have supported the amendment to the Constitution. They have supported peace, reconciliation and togetherness. That is a testimony that they had properly agreed to work together and to bring this nation together. It is testimony to all of us! Those doubting \"thomases\" must now know that Kenya has two leaders who have agreed to give us back a nation called Kenya. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I support the amendment to the Constitution because, to me--- I have been in the leadership of this country in many portfolios, whether it is in the local authority or Parliament. This is my fifth term in Parliament! I want to say very clearly that we have had no Constitution at all. When the Lancaster House Accord was abrogated by the then President - I think I support the young man, Mr. Imanyara! When Mr. Kenyatta abrogated the Lancaster House Constitution, we stayed without a Constitution. All that there was, was heaping power and more power to the Presidency. The problem today is that power has been given to one individual without sharing it at all! That has killed democracy. That has killed unity in this country. It has all been over 44 years of the presidency everywhere! The President in Parliament, the President everywhere! The President decides that and nobody else. Parliament can even be overruled! We do not control our calendar even today. It is a serious affair because the President can actually prorogue Parliament. He can send us all home if he wants. One individual! We are lucky that we have got an opportunity to look and examine our Constitution properly. We attempted it at the Bomas of Kenya, but it was shot down by a few individuals, and yet I think it was one of the best Constitutions that we ever got in this country. So, I am saying that we have got an opportunity to craft and frame a Constitution that is going to help this country for many years to come. I say very frankly that there has not been a Constitution apart from the one Mr. Kenyatta used his officials, the Attorney-General and everybody else and got a Constitution that we call so today. However, we cannot say frankly and fairly that we, the people of Kenya, framed this Constitution. We cannot! Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is as the Americans say, or some other people who have got good lasting, fair and just constitutions. So, we have got an opportunity to frame up the Constitution now at this particular stage. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, secondly, I want to say very clearly that this Accord is definitely as a result of goodwill and trust. If there is no goodwill and trust, this Bill will not help us to heal. We will go back to the trenches. We want to make sure that there is trust and goodwill among all of us and the principals as it were. If there is no goodwill, then we are not moving anywhere. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to say very clearly that we are all very sympathetic to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). We all wish them to go back to their homes as it was. However, let us look at the root causes of these conflicts because they keep on recurring. They keep flaring up. If you look at Ulster today in Northern Ireland, the British, Scots and Germans cannot 220 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES March 18, 2008 stop it. It was done the wrong way because the Irish were not considered as human beings equal to the British or the Scots. That is why they used tricks to rob the Irish of their land. We must not make a mistake. We must not put this thing under the carpet again. We better discuss these conflicts openly. We better talk like brothers and we better agree or disagree fairly when we have spoken and talked because we are all equal. This Accord here is about fairness, liberty and people being accorded human rights and not being trampled upon. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I agree entirely that we must look into this thing very carefully. If you rush it like you did last time and put it under the carpet, then you are not doing anything, but let us get it done properly. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have heard the President say that we want a new Kenya. Mr. Raila Odinga has said we want a completely new Kenya. Let us be truthful. In fact, as a matter of fact, the President has emphasised that we want everybody to live everywhere and anywhere in this country. The boundaries were created in 1887 by the European powers and we cannot do anything since we are within them. We cannot change these boundaries, but we must be honest to live and work everywhere. From Mount Kenya to Isebania; from Eldoret to Kathiani. We must not have political, social and economic impediments. Rift Valley Province is not the only place with a fertile soil. Central Province also has a fertile soil and farmers there grow coffee, tea and other crops. So, we must not be blamed because we have accommodated everybody else. We want those boundaries to be lifted so that people could live together truly and fairly and not just by mouth. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, my grandparents told me that I came from Katheri in Meru! I want to go back to Katheri. I even understand that all the Meru elites come from Katheri. So, I am also an elite! I want to say that if we do not do that, then we are cheating ourselves. The Agreement that was signed by the two principals is simple but it is also captivating. It says that no one group could rule this country on their own. If anybody tries hypocritically to think that they could rule this country on their own, they should forget it because the other groups must be there. If they are not there, it will be too bad. If we try to amend the Constitution to benefit a few people, it will be too bad. Unlike Ambassador Muthaura, we have a single file in the sharing of power. We have number one, two, three, four and five. I think we should move together. If we do not move together, it will be too bad. We are not in a single file when we share power here. So, I want to say very clearly that we are all brought together by the truth of the matter. It was also agreed that power must be shared on a 50-50 basis. This Accord was signed by President Kibaki and hon. Raila. It was also witnessed by the Tanzanian President, Jakaya Kikwete, and the Chief Mediator, Dr. Kofi Annan. It was agreed that there must be real sharing of power. That is a simple word \"real\". It is not otherwise. If it is shared by chini chini stuff and we pretend that it is shared when it is not, then it is not fair. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to say that I was a little bit taken aback this morning when my friend, the Member of Parliament for Kajiado North, Prof. Saitoti, was making his contribution. I am sorry he has gone out. I wanted to speak about it when he is here. He spoke very bitterly about the students who were killed. We are all sorry that the students were killed. I am sure he was referring to an incident which took place in Eldoret, if I am not mistaken. But what about the people who were burnt alive in their houses in Naivasha?"
}