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{
    "id": 34166,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/34166/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 448,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Lekuton",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 66,
        "legal_name": "Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton",
        "slug": "joseph-lekuton"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, we need to protect our people. Countries like Canada, Australia, United Kingdom (UK), Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand and the United States have made major strides in the management of unclaimed assets. As financial systems continue to be complicated, we need a law like this one. At the moment, there is no law that protects unclaimed money. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, just to give you an example, the State of Florida alone has received since its inception of its scheme in 1961, US$3.7 billion in unclaimed money. Even after 20 or 30 years, people have come to claim their money from the government system. Out of that money, US$1.6 billion was claimed by its rightful owners even after 20 to 30 years. The beauty about this is that the money with authorities will be used by poor Kenyans in hunger alleviation, making roads and supplying water to people. It is money that the banks have now; all the interested groups will be brought under the Government. The Government should be very happy that this Bill has been introduced because it will give them money. It is not taking money from them. It will give them money that they never had before. So, I will find it very strange for the Government not to support this Bill. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I will just give you two examples before my colleague seconds the Bill. There is a former Member of Parliament, hon. Joe Donde. I had a discussion with him and other hon. Members as well. He told me that when he lived in the United Kingdom (UK), where his last child was born, he used to get £8 per week; that is the practice there. The former hon. Member was working in the financial sector of the UK at that time. He deposited that money in a building society account and forgot about it. Then he moved to Kenya and became a Member of Parliament. When he lost his seat, he told me he was broke. He went through his suit cases and found two sets of notes. One a saving from a reputable bank and the other one was from Dub Building Society in the UK. So, he got himself a ticket and flew to the UK, 15 years later, and found out the Building Society was closed but the law protected his money. That money was taken by the building society to the Authority of Unclaimed Financial Assets Management. Hon. Donde was able to get his money back because the law was there."
}