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{
    "id": 228246,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/228246/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 253,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Mungatana",
    "speaker_title": "The Assistant Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 185,
        "legal_name": "Danson Buya Mungatana",
        "slug": "danson-mungatana"
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    "content": " Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir. I also want to join the hon. Members who have spoken before me in congratulating the Committee for the excellent preparation that was done as well as for the excellent hospitality that was extended to our guests, who came to participate in this extremely important international conference. People may forget and take it for granted that hosting 1,066 delegates from 118 parliaments is one of those things that you can do easily. In my tour of duty in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the person in charge of African affairs, we visited many countries on official duty. In many countries in Africa, it is very difficult to find suitable accommodation for hosting international conferences. We visited capital cities within our own regions of Southern and Eastern Africa to deal with certain inter-governmental matters, and found that because certain countries have no capacity, they are unable to host important inter- governmental meetings. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, therefore, I want to particularly pay tribute to the organising Committee as well as to those who organised the hospitality when this event took place in this country. This is a pointer to what this Government has been able to achieve within a very short period of time. As at the time of the hosting of the IPU conference in Nairobi, the incumbent Government had not been anything more than four years into its term. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, as has very well been expressed here and supported by the Opposition hon. Members, the facilities in terms of tourism and the hospitality business in this country was at an all time high. When you look at the figures that have been quoted on several occasions by the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife, you find that we have every reason to be proud as a Government, for the work that has been done for the last four years. Bed occupancy has gone up. We have received a lot of visitors even from countries that have not been friendly to this nation. Despite some countries offering official communication which has been discouraging visitors from coming to this country, we have seen a continuous trend of people continuing to come into this nation. This points to the level of development that this nation has achieved within the last few years of this Government in power. April 4, 2007 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 401 Not to belabour the point, the Kenyatta International Conference Centre had been run down. The place had been converted into a hawking area, but with the taking over of this Government and the new management that was set up and, indeed, the efforts of the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife, we have been able to attract international conferences of this calibre. This is a tribute to the Government that has been in power. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to also record my appreciation for the kind of resolutions that came out of the IPU meeting. When we talk of the International Peace and Security Resolution that was passed, I want to zero-in on the question of illicit small arms in Kenya. We have passed the resolution that condemns the proliferation of small arms into our region. We need not belabour the point that illegal small arms have been the cause of a lot of insecurity, not only in Kenya, but in the region as a whole. I was happy to note that even governments outside the region of Eastern and Central Africa participated in this conference and took responsibility. The small arms and the light weapons that we spoke about in the IPU conference are not manufactured in East or Central Africa. Most of these weaponry are brought in through illegal trade and they are sent specifically to this region. It was heartening to note that even those countries that manufacture these weapons were there to support this resolution against the proliferation of small arms and light weapons. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, having said that, I would want to again record the kind of efforts that the Government of Kenya has been spearheading in this region. The Kenya Government, together with other regional players around, has been able to set up a small arms centre and the Secretariat is based right here in Kenya. The Regional Centre for Small Arms (RECSA) Secretariat is based in Kenya. I participated in representing our Government when we were choosing the site and several neighbouring countries were there to support the positioning of the regional centre for small arms and light weapons control in Kenya. One of the issues that was said and repeated time and again is that Kenya has been able to put down its foot on the control of the proliferation of small arms and light weapons. Of course, a lot needs to be done, but Kenya has been on the fore-front and we need to commend the Government for the work that has been done so for. It is within the living memory when a number of light weapons, namely, firearms, were destroyed in the glare of the public. This was just in keeping with the International Peace and Security Resolution that was passed during the IPU meeting. They urged that destruction of these small arms and other light weapons must be done in the glare of the public, so that a message is sent strongly to all those who are involved in this trade and all those who would wish to make illicit money from this trade, that governments around this area are not willing to support this kind of thing. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was also very happy to note that the then Speaker for the Transitional Federal Parliament of Somalia, Sheikh Aden, addressed the IPU Conference. He got a chance to speak to the delegates and he brought to them the facts of the matter around this region. We may continue talking and passing beautiful resolutions about peace and security, but before we take practical steps to sort out the problems that are affecting our region, we will not do lot of work. It was good to hear him speak. Unfortunately, there came out no particular commitment in terms of funding and something tangible from that sitting that would go to Somalia. If we look again in those resolutions, one can see that countries are being called upon to honour previous international promises and commitments that have been made. As a country, we would encourage that nations honour their international commitments. If this had been done in Somalia in good time, we may not have had the kind of problems that erupted afterwards. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was also hoping that a fund could have been set up 402 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES April 4, 2007 during this IPU Conference, so that parliaments from the regions which are in the process of development can be assisted. For instance, there are countries which have struggled with internal wars for many years. These countries need support in real terms, but not support in terms of nicely worded resolutions. These are parliaments that are struggling to be recognised as democracies that are flourishing. I had a chance to visit the place where the Transitional Federal Parliament of Somalia was sitting and I found that chairs were inadequate. The loud speaker was not functional. The hon. Members who had been chosen had not gone through so much in terms of capacity building and in terms of how to do things in Parliament. As a result, there were some arguments and things that would look very strange if they were happening in this House. In adopting this report, it could have been a very good idea if some funds had been set aside, specifically to help develop up-coming parliaments and democracies that are just taking off, or democracies that have been interrupted by civil wars. Having said that, I think Kenya and this Parliament can take a leading role in this region. We have a concept of Parliament teaming up with other Parliaments to encourage growth in parliamentary practice and procedures. We can do it in our own small way as Parliament. We can visit other Parliaments and engage them at deeper rather than superficial levels. We should look forward to the next IPU Conference that will be held in Geneva. Kenya can go there and say that it has nurtured parliaments of other countries to grow. It will be a very beautiful thing. Kenya has pioneered in many things, as far as parliamentary procedures are concerned. We are the first real multi-party and democratically elected Parliament. We have serious democratic practices taking place in this country. We have the first Government that was elected on a coalition basis. We should state how we function and the challenges that we face, both positive and negative. We were able to overcome some of those challenges. But we have also not been able to overcome others. We have consequent results of what has happened. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, those shared experiences can be documented within this Parliament. We can use them to enrich our neighbours and friends within this region. That way, we can say that our Parliament has taken a leading role within the region. When we go to the next IPU Conference, we can be proud to say what we have done, apart from the other generalised resolutions. I wish, once again, to commend the delegates for the resolutions that they passed on sustainable trade and development. That is a very crucial issue for us, as a nation and Parliament. This Parliament has shown the way. In many ways, I am very proud for being part of this Parliament. This Parliament has passed substantial legislations that have ensured the economic growth of this country. That also tells you that our Government is committed to foster development. In terms of administrative actions, we have reduced the number of licences required to open businesses. We have also reduced the time that was required for foreign investors to come into this country. We have also initiated divestiture and sale of our State owned companies. It has been done in a proper way. We have come out looking good as a Parliament. That is part of sustainable development in this country. If the law is there, development will follow tomorrow. That is part of the sustainable development that we are talking about. Parliament can do more in terms of sustainable development, finance and trade. The Tanzanian Parliament has passed more legislation than we have. It is my hope that in this final term, we shall pass more legislations that touch on trade and finance. For instance, today, we had the First Reading of some of those legislations that are very crucial in terms of how we allocate our monies in the Budget. If we can sit together as Parliament and pass a law that will help us manage our economy in a sustainable manner, we can hold our heads high and say that we have done a good job. April 4, 2007 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 403 Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, otherwise, I stand to sincerely support this Report and the work that has gone into it. I appreciate the beautiful ideas that have been expressed in this Report. I also wish to join others who have said that we should effect some of the things that have been passed here as soon as possible. I thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to support. Thank you."
}