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{
    "id": 307305,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/307305/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 348,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "The Assistant Minister, Ministry of State for Planning, National Development and Vision 2030 (",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Mr. Kenneth): Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, security cannot be negotiable and I support the Bill. However, we must be very careful that even as we strive to get internal and external security right, we have spoken about incidences of insecurity that we continue to have in our country with the existing NSIS as it is today. In fact, they normally come after the event. I was going to say, with all due respect to the doctors’ profession, it comes in as a postmortem rather than in advance operation. Therefore, we must have an efficient system where surveillance is up to date and we are covered. Even in police States like Switzerland, you do not see people armed or walking around with arms, yet we know they are police States. We have also seen the Home Land Department in the USA emphasizing on internal security without infringing on the citizens’ rights. I have issues, first in the definition clause where we have classification. We need to be sure what we mean by that classification and whether it can be de-classified after 30 years. Secondly, we need to look at the issue of warrants of arrest. One of the basic tenets of the rule of law is arbitrary arrest which is not allowed under the rule of law. That must be very clear because it is part of a freedom that we must never take from anybody else. Thirdly, in terms of being aided to carry out some of these things, looking at forensic, the National Intelligence Service would never be able to use forensic, which is the work of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). It must allow the department that is used to it be allowed to use it. I am also uncomfortable with Clause 78. We cannot install the Director General to be above the law, whom I have a lot of respect for. For the future, it is important not to install a person in this country to be above the law. This clause says that he cannot be subject to prosecution and accountability. What kind of law are we talking about? Everybody must be under the law including the President. He is within the law. Therefore, it is very important for accountability and equal rights for the citizens to ensure that no office is endowed with particular rights. You do not know the kind of Director-General that you will have in future and the kind of operations that he will carry out, for example, arresting people arbitrarily and doing other things and then saying that he cannot be charged while in office. We need to be accountable. Finally, on the issue of firearms, intelligence gathering is the core business of this Service and its officers cannot operate like police officers. You realize that you even need them to wear jeans and tuck in their shirts, so that nobody thinks they are police officers. That is how information is"
}