Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 225399,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/225399/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 122,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Khamisi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 246,
        "legal_name": "Joseph Matano Khamisi",
        "slug": "joseph-khamisi"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I think time has come for the Government to start a project of building rehabilitation centres all over this country to deal with the increasing number of drug abusers. We also need trained personnel and counsellors who can do this work of trying to rehabilitate our young people so that they do not fall back into drug abuse. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, there are also reports of our prisons being centres of drug trafficking. These reports even point a finger at the officers within these institutions, who assist in bringing drugs into our prisons and circulating them to prisoners. This is unfortunate! We need to send people to prison for rehabilitation, but we are sending people there to continue with their drug abuse problem within the prison institutions. This is unfortunate and it should not be allowed. I am calling upon the Commissioner of Prisons to see to it that this practice actually stops. April 18, 2007 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 693 Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, when we talk about drug abuse, we concentrate on hard drugs and alcohol, but I think we need to have a fresh look at miraa . I know that this is a very controversial subject. I know that it touches on some hon. Members of this Parliament and the societies in certain parts of this country, but I think that we need to have a second look at this issue: Is miraa useful to our people? What we have seen at the coast is that, miraa, mixed with drugs is, actually, very devastating to the mind and body of our individuals. So, I think it is important that, while we promote agriculture and miraa, we also need to look at the negative effects that it may cause to our people so that we can have proper legislation to ensure that this particular substance is used properly and within the allowed parameters. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, this legislation is very important because, as it says, it intends to formulate a policy to monitor what goes on in this country and also to deal with drug abusers and traffickers. I am not convinced that the present sentences that are given in courts to people who are caught with massive drug hauls at the airport are adequate. I think we need to look at it again and see whether we could tighten it. We need to see how we can also stop foreigners from using Nairobi or this country as a transit point for drug trafficking. It is very sad that Kenyans have been caught in this situation, not only here, but also in foreign countries. It is unfortunate because as we talk, we have Kenyans who are actually facing death sentences. I think there is a Kenyan who has actually been hanged in the Middle East. We need to find a way of persuading our youngsters to find better means of survival than dealing with drugs. If we do that, we will be doing a good service to this country. With those few remarks, I beg to support this Motion."
}