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"id": 248408,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/248408/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Mwenje",
"speaker_title": "The Assistant Ministser for Co-operative Development and Marketing",
"speaker": {
"id": 257,
"legal_name": "David S. Kamau Mwenje",
"slug": "david-mwenje"
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"content": " Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir. I beg to second this Bill. The Assistant Minister for Finance has outlined the various areas which need to be amended for the purposes of making this law more effective. As the Chair may note, every single day, Members bring Questions asking why particular benefits have not been paid to a particular individual. Even Members have privately decided to bring Motions which have turned into Bills to make sure that those who retire get their benefits. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, when somebody retires, that is the time that he needs to be looked after. At that time, that person does not have the energy to do other work. He has been saving so that, that money can sustain him for the rest of his life. But because of the delay in payment of these benefits, when somebody retires, most retirees die after one to two years in retirement. In most Western countries, you will find that people look forward to their retirement time because they are assured that they will be paid. But here, you retire and you are never sure whether you will be paid your money on time. Because of these delays, people get sick and their lives change immediately. If one is used to eating some meat, they cannot even afford to eat even a quarter kilogramme. Sometimes, your wife can even leave you, as hon. Moi is suggesting. Therefore, I want to agree totally with the Ministry of Finance that we amend the areas which cause any delay in payment. We must have a proper administrator of these funds who, immediately, is even answerable to Parliament and the people. I hope that the moment we pass this Bill, it will be implemented immediately. I will give you a practical example. A brother to my father died some time back. His wife has been seeking to be paid his benefits. But because of the bureaucracy in these procedures, she has never been paid. I think she is likely to die before enjoying what was left by her husband. If, at my level, I have not been successful in assisting them to be paid, what about the common man? Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I also want to thank the President for ordering the increment of benefits to retirees. For the first time, the media, which has been very critical of this Government, showed appreciation. Although they are claiming credit that the increment was done because of their campaign, I want to tell them that this Government does not dance to the tunes of the media. It was done by the President in his own wisdom and the advice of his people, and not necessarily because of the media campaign. Nevertheless, their campaign served as a reminder, but they should not claim credit wholly. With those remarks, I beg to second."
}