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"id": 229060,
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"speaker_name": "Mr. Cheboi",
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"legal_name": "Moses Kipkemboi Cheboi",
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"content": "Thank you very much, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Presidential Address to this House. Taking queue from the wise counsel of the hon. Member who has just sat down, where he said that we should not just criticise, I think we should talk about things which we think should be made better to improve the general welfare of this country. I must say that the Address of the President was fairly general and that there are a few lacking details which would have made it better. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, talking about agriculture, for instance, for quite some time now, some sub-sectors have continued to be marginalised. There are sub-sectors into which the Government has put a lot of effort. However, other sub-sectors, particularly the pyrethrum sub- sector, have always been discussed in public rallies and other public fora, but in practice, have not been given the attention they are given in speeches and other documents in order to improve the livelihood of the particular farmers. Pyrethrum farmers have suffered for quite some time. While the Government has been looking into the cereals, cotton and sugar sub-sectors, what we hear about the pyrethrum sub-sector most of the time is the issue of sacking of directors. We hear about issues which are not very useful to the pyrethrum farmer. So, it would have been better if the President put more emphasis on the pyrethrum sub-sector. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, some time back, Kenya was the leading producer of pyrethrum in the whole world. My constituency was the leading producer of pyrethrum in the country. Effectively, therefore, my constituency was leading in the whole world in terms of production of pyrethrum. However, over time, pyrethrum production in the country has gone very low. We have even been beaten by countries like Rwanda. We have been overtaken by the synthetic industries, which produce almost the same chemicals found in the pyrethrum plant. So, I feel that in future, the President should put more emphasis on all the sub-sectors of agriculture, including the pyrethrum sub-sector. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the increment of the number of judges from 60 to 200 and the Judges of the Court of Appeal from 50 to 150 is a very good idea. It is actually belated. But we also want to be given an assurance that the Judicial Service Commission will be strengthened. The appointment of judges should be through a competitive system and they should be recruited from every part of this country. I am sure you are aware that a few months ago, there was an appointment of judges that never was. Three judges were appointed, they went to State House and before they were sworn in, they were asked to go back. Actually, they were taken back to their stations. It becomes difficult to understand what happens once a judge has been appointed, gazetted, but he or she has not been 214 PARLIAENTARY DEBATES March 28, 2007 sworn in. You wonder whether these people are judges or they are still magistrates. Later on, two of them were made Chief Magistrates in different stations in this Republic. That is a case of flouting the very laws which this Parliament enacts."
}