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{
    "id": 30338,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/30338/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 320,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Ngugi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 112,
        "legal_name": "David Mwaniki Ngugi",
        "slug": "david-ngugi"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me a chance to support this very important Motion. From the outset, let me congratulate Mr. Namwamba for bringing this Motion which, in my view, is a pillar of the Vision 2030. We have the three pillars of Vision 2030, but we need to do more in those pillars in order to realise Vision 2030. It is institutions like the Kenya Farmers Association (KFA) that will be able to revive and progress the agricultural sector so that we do not only have food security in this country, but also achieve Vision 2030. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, when I was growing up, the KFA was in operation. I remember those days when farmers used to go to the KFA and even get inputs on loan, and once they delivered their crops, the KFA would deduct the cost of the inputs and then pay the farmers what was their profit. We saw the KFA go done in the 1980s and 1990s. This was not an exception. It went down just like the East African Bag and Cordage Company and other institutions went down because the Government interfered with these institutions. The Government had picked people to go not necessarily to loot, but to manage these institutions. Instead of managing them, they looted the institutions and the Government did nothing. As a result, the institutions collapsed and those that did not collapse are on their knees. The KFA is one such institution. If we value agriculture, we must address the supply chain of the inputs, seeds and where farmers can get credit. The KFA is one such institution that should be used by the Government to address this problem. The KFA collapsed with farmers’ and employees’ money. It also collapsed with money from suppliers. This money is Kenyans’ money. This money made some farmers, suppliers and other people to be poor. So, it is very important that the Government steps in like it did in the coffee industry. It has also stepped in other sectors and there is no reason why it should not step in and bail out the KFA. Right now, the Government is pumping over Kshs10 billion to alleviate hunger in parts of northern Kenya and Turkana. If the KFA was operational, maybe things would not have been the way they are. What is Kshs1.4 billion compared with the over Kshs10 billion that we are pumping to alleviate the hunger that we experience in this country? It is high time that the Government looked at what is important to move forward. Is it to pump money to alleviate hunger and to try and control floods every year or to put money where it is most needed and where it can have a positive multiplier effect? This is why this Motion is very important. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, many Kenyans lost their jobs and livelihood when the KFA collapsed and some could not even educate their kids. If the KFA is revived, it will be an avenue to employ more people. So, this Motion is really timely and it should be supported. It is institutions like these that will help this country move forward. With those few remarks, I beg to support this Motion."
}