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"id": 227283,
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"speaker_name": "Dr. Rutto",
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"legal_name": "Sammy Kipkemoi Rutto",
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"content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to contribute to the debate on this Motion. First of all, I would like to appreciate the fact that our own Parliament sponsored a few hon. Members to participate in this discussion as hon. Members of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly. I was a bit disappointed that although this was an opportunity for Parliamentarians from Kenya to interact with those from the ACP and the European Union, we only managed to send two hon. Members. I would really have appreciated if we sent more hon. Members. Again, if you look at the two reports; the one we are discussing now which is for the June meeting and the other one for the November meeting, you will realise that it is still the same two hon. Members who attended. I would really have appreciated if there was a bit of diversity. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, apart from that, I am impressed by the issues that were covered in the meetings of Vienna and later on, in Barbados. The Report identifies various issues which provided a basis for us to learn from other Parliamentarians the world over. One of them, of 480 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES April 10, 2007 course, is the issue of poverty. Poverty featured in the discussions. The goal for discussing poverty is reported to have been, that poverty is a challenge to national development. Indeed, we acknowledge the fact that poverty is still a big challenge to our development in this country. When I was contributing towards the Presidential Speech, I mentioned that although the other side continues to report growing economic development, the gap between the rich and poor is growing and there is need to try and reduce that gap. The Report identifies, specifically in the Kenyan situation, that the gap between the rich and the poor is growing. As a Parliament and as leaders, we need to respond specifically to this development trend. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, when the have-nots are more than the haves, that is a recipe for unrest and criminal activities. There is need to learn from such fora and do something to improve our situation; to try to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor. Indeed, we are being told that the economy of this country is growing, but I still insist that the proceeds of the growing economy still favour the rich more than the poor. There is need to reduce this gap. I also want to make an observation on the basis of this Report that the economic strength between the rural areas and the urban areas is not the same. The urban areas in this country tend to experience much more economic benefit than the rural areas. I represent farmers in my constituency and we labour day in, day out, but the problem is that the rural farmers do not fetch sufficient profits as traders fetch in urban areas. The gap between development in rural and urban areas is widening and there is need for us to stem that trend and close the gap. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, if you look at the developments that are taking place now in urban areas versus the rural areas, you will find that there is a lot of infrastructure development in urban areas than there is in rural areas. Look at electricity, for instance. The Ministry of Energy is distributing electricity and it is giving priority to urban centres while leaving out the rural areas. I would like to make an observation that energy is a right and not a privilege. When the Government sets its policies to provide energy to urban areas first, it is sincerely saying that urban areas have more priorities in terms of the use of energy than the rural areas. That is wrong. I want to say that, in terms of distribution of energy, we need to close the gap between the urban and the rural areas. The Report continues, on the issue of poverty, to say that one of the causes of poverty in society is unequal distribution of resources. It is sad that, in this country, distribution of resources, particularly to the development of infrastructure like roads and communication networks, is still uneven. The poor continue to receive little resources to develop their roads and communication networks. For instance, if you compare Central Province, or Rift Valley Province, with North Eastern Province or Coast Province or Meruland, you will realise that the distribution of resources to roads and communication networks development is unfairly done. We are saying that the Meru people, or the North Eastern Province people, are impoverished because we have consistently distributed resources, which are meant to revive our economies, in a very unfair manner. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Report identifies another factor that is an enemy of development, particularly in the African setting, namely, conflict. It is sad that in this country, we still experience sporadic conflicts in various areas. The Mount Elgon conflict affects the development of this country. Although the conflict is located in Mount Elgon area, the weakening effect on the economy of this country will be felt by even those who do not come from Mount Elgon. If we do not pay attention to the conflict in Mount Elgon, we will, simply, be saying that we are not concerned about our economic development. There is need to strengthen dialogue amongst our communities. For several years, this country has had conflicts occurring in various places. For instance, in 1992 and 1997, my own constituency experienced a lot of ethnic animosity. In Molo April 10, 2007 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 481 recently, we experienced a lot of ethnic animosity. From my own observation, the basic point is that the Government and leaders are not serious in strengthening dialogue between communities. There is no reason as to why one community should go for the neck of the other. Secondly, we have failed, as leaders and Government, to do justice when it is due. There is a lot of delayed justice. I am glad that the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs is here. The weak criminal justice system in this country affects how we deal with crime and conflicts. So, we need to strengthen the criminal justice system, as well as the Judiciary, and quicken our response to conflicts, so that we can reduce the losses that accrue from conflicts. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Report also touches on issues of governance. I would like to say that in this country, we are still learning. We are slow in learning to improve on issues of governance. Corruption is still very much around, because we have not put in place the legal instruments that support the fight against corruption very strongly. We still engage in bad politics, as a nation and leaders - politics that does not promote good governance. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for instance, the Government still meddles in the affairs of Opposition parties. The Government continues to poach hon. Members from the Opposition and includes them in the Cabinet. That is a way of meddling in good governance. I wish the Government could understand and leave Opposition leaders on their own. Secondly, the Government is not very serious about strengthening the policy of separation of powers. You still find that the Executive exercises a lot of control even over matters that take place in Parliament. The Executive still controls the parliamentary calendar when, in actual fact, previously, a Motion was brought to this House to change that arrangement. What I am sincerely saying is that bad governance, has some effect on development; we are still lagging behind. I urge my colleagues that we should strengthen certain instruments and institutions, which will strengthen good governance in our country. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, we are still discussing matters of constitutional review five years after the current Government came into place. My observation is that the Government is very happy when constitutional review talks are derailed, so that it can drag its feet instead of providing leadership on the issue of constitutional change. I want to tell leaders from both sides of the House that we need to write the rules that will guide our political development as we strive to develop better governance structures. With those words, I beg to support."
}