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"id": 226796,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/226796/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Tarus",
"speaker_title": "The Assistant Minister, Office of the President",
"speaker": {
"id": 315,
"legal_name": "Stephen Kipkiyeny Tarus",
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"content": " Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir. I wish to respond, on behalf of the Minister for Agriculture. May I begin by supporting this Motion and thanking Mr. Khamisi for coming up with this very, very important Motion. I am also happy that the House has made some amendments to the Motion to ensure that both sides of the House are included in that Select Committee. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, this Motion is, indeed, a contribution towards the improvement of the lives of Kenyans. Kenyans are interested to know how their state of economy has been driven previously. They especially want to stop continued suffering. I am glad that the hon. Member, while moving the Motion, gave a presentation on the ownership, funding and shareholding of this particular factory. This is one case among many in the country of factories that never saw the light of day as a result of mismanagement, corruption and poor governance. It will be of interest, to the Government, to know--- I hear some hon. Members mentioning that there are reports by the Public Investments Committee (PIC) on this particular factory. It will be the interest of Kenyans to know whether the shareholding was downgraded, the manner in which it was disposed and whether the Government benefited from those funds. Secondly, Kenyans would like to know whether there were any steps taken or attempts made to revive the factory. This will be, indeed, a very important report. I hope the Committee will be able to come up with appropriate recommendations that will see how this particular factory will be revived. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the other issue that we wanted to consider is that as a Government, having taken performance contract now as a method to push the economy forward, we hope that this will be done very fast. By so doing, it will allow the Ministry of Agriculture to enlist this factory as its priority for revival so that the economy or the livelihoods of the people who benefit from this economic activity may be improved. This is neither the first case nor the last one. The route the Kenya Seed Company went seems to be the same route this factory took. The Kenya Co-operative Creameries (KCC) and the Kenya Farmers Association (KFA) seem to have also gone the same way. I think we also need, as a Government and hon. Members, to begin taking stock four or five years down the line, of what has taken place. Has there been a change in governance? When we talk of governance, this is a clear example of the impact of governance. If we have good governance right from the Ministry to the parastatal and up to the management of these factories, we will be able to be true representatives of Kenyans. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, that is why people elect governments. They elect them because they cannot all be there to see everything. They want representatives who will be able to be their mouth-piece and true custodians of public property. If this factory had been saved from the gallows of the corrupt, possibly, we would be having three or four other factories in that region related to this particular sector. This sector would have grown and, therefore, if that factory was employing 3,000 people, maybe, the same sector would be employing, possibly, over 30,000 people given that it was an investment of the 1970s. We must guard our investments. People must really know how they sacrifice generations. If you sacrifice an investment of Kshs300 or Kshs1 billion, what you will incidentally do--- As you accumulate wealth as one person, what you will incidentally do is that the 30,000 or so people who would have been employed by that same factory are paying for your wealth. This is so because they would be benefiting from that factory through April 11, 2007 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 525 employment. They would also be investing the income they earn through their own graduation into wealth creation. Therefore, you sacrifice and suffocate the country. God forbid that these people should see leadership again! I hope that as we go for elections at the end of the year, Kenyans will get a report card of each person. If you are seeking the presidency, you should bring your report card and tell us whether you are part of those who have destroyed the economy of this country. Let us not cheat ourselves! People hide behind tribalism but they do not think about the people. The Coast Province has borne the brunt of this type of leadership. If we talk about the milk factory, it collapsed. The cashewnut and sugar factories also collapsed. Where did those people who caused the collapse want the others to go? Where did that leadership want those people to go, except to slavery and hopelessness? So, I hope that when the Committee comes up with recommendations, as a Government, we would like them taken seriously so that we can change the lives of those people. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, with those few remarks, I beg to support."
}