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"content": "Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I too do rise to support the Motion, even though I am not quite happy with the manner in which it is framed. That is because the forces are already in Somalia. They are not there as peace keepers. The military spokespersons who have been giving reports on the Operation Linda Nchi have been talking about liberated areas. Therefore, those forces are not really there as peace keepers. This ought to have come to this House as a report under Article 241 (3) (b) which requires that the Kenya Defence Forces shall assist and co-operate with other authorities in situations of emergency or disaster and report to the National Assembly. Because those forces are already there, what the Minister should have done is make a report to the National Assembly as required under the Constitution. That is because the provisions under which the Minister relies on now really relate to peace keeping. Nevertheless, the principle of approval of the National Assembly is important because those are our KDF. To that extent, I do support this Motion. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would have expected the Minister, in moving the Motion - because they are there now as part of AMISOM - to tell us a little bit more about AMISOM. He should have told us how it is constituted, under what law, the financing, the duration and who will be working with the Kenyan Defence Forces, the levels of command and under whose command our forces in Somalia will be. Those are details that we are entitled to know because we are no longer there as a country, but as part of the AU Mission. I hope that the Minister, in responding, will attend to those matters. For example, we know the call from the UN has been that AMISOM forces are not enough. They need to raise the levels from the current 8,000 to a particular number. Therefore, our forces are going to enter the agreement under AMISON under what terms? How many of our soldiers are going there? What are the cost implications? What is the Minister doing in terms of the health of the soldiers in Somalia today? These are issues which the Government is required, under the Constitution, to report to the House, at least, once every year. In responding to this Motion, I do hope the Minister will be able to respond to these specific issues. Even as we send our forces to Somalia, we need to maintain the integrity and sovereignty of our own borders. For too long, we have been ridiculed by some of our neighbours with regard to certain islands on Lake Victoria and certain areas in northern Kenya. This has given our forces the opportunity to prove their worth. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, as a son of a soldier, I am very proud of our forces out there because they have proved our detractors wrong. They have shown they can defend our country. I, therefore, do support this Motion and I hope that those who will speak after me will, likewise, support it."
}