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"id": 287498,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/287498/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Raila",
"speaker_title": "The Prime Minister",
"speaker": {
"id": 195,
"legal_name": "Raila Amolo Odinga",
"slug": "raila-odinga"
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"content": "We must be prepared to scale the stairs and shoot the gun at the same time. Whereas we are engaged in security operations in Somali, life cannot come into a standstill in our own country. We will make all the necessary arrangements and preparations to ensure that identity cards are provided to all the people who have attained the age that entitles them to be issued with those documents. We will ensure that they get identity cards so that they can participate in elections; and that they are also registered when the time for registration comes. On hon. Mbadi’s query, yes, in areas that we have captured, we are engaged in creating a civilian administration working together with the TFG. We have been creating civilian administration because we know that when a country has been in civil war for that long period, there are lives which are more or less wasted. Infrastructure had completely been destroyed. In some places, there are no roads, schools, health centres and so on. We are working together with other international agencies which are constructing and restoring infrastructure in Somalia. However, capacity building and training is the responsibility of the African Union (AU). The AU is very much engaged in that aspect of trying to create capacity within Somalia so that when a proper civilian government takes over, they will have the capacity to help them manage their country. The hon. Member for North Horr, Mr. Chachu Ganya, tried to draw a comparison between Somaliland and Somalia. He was attempting to compare oranges with apples. However, I want to inform the hon. Member that our neighbour, Somalia, has had serious problems almost from Independence. As you know, during the colonial days, Somaliland had been divided to various spheres of influence. We had Italian Somaliland which bordered Kenya; British Somaliland which is at the horn, whose capital is Hargeisa and French Somaliland which is also known as the land of Afas and Isas which is now Djibouti. Then, there was another area that was inhabited by Somalis but was part of Ethiopia that they call the Ogaden. Of course, there is another part of it which is in Kenya. That is what formed what they called the “greater Somalia with the five stars”. At Independence, the British Somaliland decided to federate with the Italian Somaliland to form the Federal Republic of Somalia at that time. But those countries had been ruled as two separate colonies. Italians had ruled the south while the British had ruled the north. There was a big difference between these two Somalis. The British had created a lot of order in the north. There were proper education, health and administration systems. In the south, the system was different. Somebody said that it was only chaos that Italy was capable of creating. These two parts of Somaliland came and co-existed for a long time. However, as it has happened in many other African countries, because of bad governance, there was misrule and dictatorship in Somalia that tore the country apart. Many different groups came up led by warlords. That is why we are where we are. Somaliland is now a splinter group that has split away from the original federation and has formed a civilian government which has been carrying out elections as the hon. Member said. We want is to see a solution that is all inclusive and will be acceptable to all the people of Somalia. Whether it is a federation or whatever it is, it is up to the Somalis themselves to decide. All that we are doing is to try and create an enabling environment which will enable the Somalis to carry out dialogue in order to structure the system of governance that answers the needs of the people of Somalia now and for posterity. Hon. Ochieng asked about the returning of refugees to Somalia. I wish he would say that to Mr. Ban-Ki Moon and he would see the red lights. These people who have come to our country have become international refugees and are the responsibility of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). So, their return is not an easy thing. We cannot, as a country, decide today that we are returning very many people back to Somalia. There are rules and regulations that must be followed. However, we have suggested that we set up proper feeding centres in areas which have already been liberated by our forces so that we can stem the tide of the flow of refugees coming from Somalia over to our border. This is because a number of these refugees are more of economic refugees than political refugees. Some of them are running away from hunger or lack of food, medicine and education. So, we have suggested that we set up centres inside Somalia where provisions can be made and given to them. The tents that we have constructed here can be constructed there. We can take water, build schools, health centres and feeding points so that they can be fed inside Somalia. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this is something that we have suggested to the international community and we will not stop reminding them that this is necessary because this issue of so many refugees in our country is hurting our own economy. It is affecting our own security. You come from a constituency and you know from your personal experience what kind of environmental disaster the presence of so many refugees within our country portends. So, this is something that we will continue to raise with the international community. Hon. Njuguna talked about the harassment of Kenyan businessmen in South Sudan. We know that South Sudan is a new country and this is a country that is being run by people who have just come out of conflict and they are in the process of building more durable structures in terms of security. It is true that Kenyan businessmen have been harassed. Kenyans have been killed, but I want to say that from the explanation received, it was not deliberate and that action was taken against the people who harassed Kenyan businessmen and even harmed some of our citizens. At the moment, the country is going through a very difficult period because the disputes with the north over the sharing of oil revenue or the cost of transportation of oil to the sea has forced them to stop the pumping of oil to the north. This from an economy which is 90 per cent dependent on oil is causing a serious economic challenge to them. The question of foreign currency is becoming a major issue. At the moment, the rations are being given selectively to our businessmen only when the need arises. So, we need to have some sympathy with our brothers in South Sudan as they try to resolve this dispute with their brothers in the north so that their economy can begin to function normally, once again. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to construct an alternative pipeline from the southern oil fields to Lamu. As we are talking, negotiations are ongoing in order to begin the construction of that second pipeline to Lamu. Hon. Members also know that in the process of us discussing this, Kenya also struck oil in Turkana. So, we might also now change our own concept of this pipeline to include the pumping of Turkana oil to the south towards Lamu. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, hon. Kapondi talked about refugees in Tana River who are harassing the locals. Yes, that information was received by the Government; that there were some refugees who had found their way into other parts of the country. We know that there are quite a number of them. In fact, the estimate is about 20,000 refugees who are illegally outside the refugee camps. The Government has now introduced biometric equipment for screening purposes and this process is ongoing. This is the screening of some of these people who maybe illegally in the country and have them apprehended and taken back to the refugee camps. This is something that is ongoing. It is something that is not being deliberately tolerated by our people. We want to ensure that refugees are in the refugee camps under the charge of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir."
}