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{
    "id": 380662,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/380662/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 208,
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    "content": "I listened to Dr. Kuti contribute to this Motion and that took my mind way back into the past as to where we came from and where we are going. I am happy that there are people like Dr. Kuti who are now thinking about the future of this country. If we go the way we are going – I see no way of changing the situation – then we will be heading to more serious problems than we anticipate. I think that this matter should be dealt with by the county governments which are more versed with the culture of their people. It is very difficult to introduce this issue nationally especially to people who have fully embraced Christianity, Islam or other beliefs. This Motion is very important. I wish there was a way of turning the train back because it is moving very fast. The Pokot Community, among others, may be feeling worried and thinking that they have been left behind by the Kikuyus and other communities. However, my question is, how have they been left behind? Could this be in terms of money or education? This is where we need to be critical in our thinking so that we know what moral standards we are looking for. When you find a parent like Dr. Kuti or myself, going to a primary school and attempting to slap a teacher who has abused a child, this may not be good. We are in a “catch 22” situation, and it is difficult in this age of modernization to think about going backwards. You only have to think about America and when Feminism took place. The women in America stood very firm in fighting for their liberation. That fight did not end up well because they acquired too much power that was not necessary in a society that embraces marriages. Today, in America, the same group that fought for Feminism is the one that is questioning what has happened to the society and why marriages are not being sustained. I dealt with Feminism in America when I was doing my Masters Degree. One part of my paper was about Feminism in America. We discovered quite a lot. These people also discovered homosexuality. If we have reached a point where two men can act as man and wife, that is going too far. I think if 90 per cent of the Members both in the Senate and the National Assembly were thinking the way Dr. Kuti was thinking before he brought this Motion, then things would be good. I am sure that he has had sleepless nights. He has a reason, but I sympathize with him because the train of change is moving very fast, changing this society to what we do not know. We can only imagine based on what we see today that the society is going to be beyond our control. This Motion is very well written, but I think that this matter needs to start from the counties, since the people in that county understand their culture. This is because there can never be uniformity in culture. We are all different people. There are people who believe in circumcision while others do not. So, I think that we have a long way to go. I wish that we could have a way of stopping the speed of our cultural destruction. But there is no country that I could say has stood firm against westernization. You can talk about India, but if you talk to any ordinary Indian here in Nairobi, he will tell you that their culture is gone. If education could take place without interfering with culture, colonialism would not have worked. We would not have been managed by colonialists if they did not start by destroying our culture. They had to destroy our culture and language. Your first name has to be in English. Once you change yourself completely, your children must follow suit. Therefore, we are heading to a destination that we do not understand. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}