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"content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir. I am happy that you have given me an opportunity to support the Report that we have on the Floor of this House today. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, one thing that has caused Kenyans a lot of stress in recent times is HIV/AIDS. It has brought great poverty to this country. It has hit us hard. There have been many deaths and a huge cost as a result of HIV/AIDS deaths in Kenya. In many communities, when someone dies, it is a very expensive affair. I think that kind of thing affects many communities in this country. In terms of health-care, HIV/AIDS has cost this country a lot of money. It is still giving us a lot of problems because those who have been infected need a lot of care. In many instances, they die if they do not access Anti-Retroviral drugs. It has also cost us a lot in terms of income. Most of the time, the ones that are infected and end up dying are the income- earners and bread-winners in their families. So, it has hit many families in this country. Thousands and thousands of families have been affected. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the agricultural production has really been hit by that scourge. For example, in my constituency, which is a basically sugar-cane growing area, the rate of infection has made so many farms remain un-tilled. Many farms that had sugar-cane have been left un-attended. We have hight rates of infection and deaths. When children see their parents go through a slow-death, sliming and then, at the end of the day, dying miserably, they are terribly affected. It leaves a terrible impact on them. They are psychologically affected. Many of them never recover or forget about it. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, some children are even born with the HIV/AIDS virus. When you see them, you really feel for them. They go through suffering that we would not wish to see. Once the parents die, the children start missing the basic needs in life. They miss shelter over their heads that they had when the parents were alive. They even drop out of schools and do not even enjoy normal health care. They also lack food. In these circumstances, they will always end up on the streets. Although some of them are born from other arrangements in town, quiet a number are orphans. Nairobi has probably the highest number of street children. These children are orphaned through death of parents from HIV/AIDS complications and other causes of death. 1640 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES May 24, 2007 Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, some of these children end up being taken care of by their good relatives, if they are lucky. Those relatives could provide them with basic needs in form of shelter, clothing, food and education. They could also be provided with a good and friendly family environment which most orphans miss. But quite a good number of them end up under the care of hostile relatives. They are mistreated, denied food, good clothing and education. Sometimes, they are discriminated against. It is a pity for them to see the children with whom they are living together in the same compound treated better. It leaves a very bad psychological impact on them. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, as I have said, a number of those who take care of those orphans are terrible. They really mistreat them. I have witnessed some of these cases. Quite often, orphans end up staying in their homes alone. The mother and father die leaving them in the home. These are cases of children taking care of children. It is a very difficult condition for them because they do not know how to get the basic needs such as food and clothing. They may be living in their dead parents' houses, but how do they get the provisions for life? It is difficult! I have seen some of these cases and the children suffer a lot. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, this is a situation that needs proper attention by the Government and leaders. We, as hon. Members of Parliament, and leaders of this country, need to address this issue seriously. Personally, I take care of three of them. They are very delicate in the way they relate to other children. So if people taking care of them are not careful, they end up running away. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Government must go out of its way and make sure that these children get proper care. I would urge the Government to provide them with food, clothing and education. Some donors have been trying to do that through Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). However, some of the NGOs are poorly managed. The people who run them get money, but it does not end up helping the orphans. It ends up in the pockets of the NGO owners and their investments. Therefore, the Government needs to come out forcefully and address this issue. To me, it has not been properly addressed. Many orphans have failed to go to the university. In a few cases, they have gone through primary and secondary education. Even if they perform well in secondary schools, their chances of joining universities are very slim because they do not have money. Today, many students are under the parallel degree programme at the public and private universities. However, orphans will never make it. I have seen a number of them in my constituency miss out when it comes to university education. These are very brilliant boys and girls, but they do not go to the university simply because they do not have the money to pay fees and take care of themselves. With those few remarks, I beg to support. I urge the Government to address seriously the problems of orphans and vulnerable children in this country."
}