Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 384978,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/384978/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 205,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Hargura",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 827,
        "legal_name": "Godana Hargura",
        "slug": "godana-hargura"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this important Motion. I also thank Sen. (Dr.) Machage for bringing up this Motion. As you know, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we are a country which has its own aspirations; we want to reach somewhere, and that is why we have Vision 2030, and, of course, that vision can only be attained if we have a productive citizenry. But what we are having across the country is not in that direction; especially our youth, who we are relying on. We know each country depends on its youth, but research done indicates that 33 per cent of secondary school students do actually abuse these substances, and the major group is aged between 17 to 19 years. That shows that our youth are becoming unproductive at a very early age. So, these kinds of visions will not be attained, and that is why we have to declare this a national disaster so that the Government takes it seriously and so that we can sort ourselves out, have this situation arrested and have a productive citizenry. We know very well what is happening right now in the country because it is always in the news. For example, in the central parts of this country, illicit alcohol and spirits abuse is very much the trend and it is affecting the social lives of the people. We know of cases where even the productive systems of the society are affected to an extent that just the other day, it was in the news. Just before the elections, there was a case where a councilor was giving incentives to his people so that they can reproduce and have children. That shows the productive part of that society has been affected so much that even our population growth will be affected, yet what we are relying on is our youth. We have to look at what we are discussing – alcohol and drug abuse. To me, all alcohol is not good and we are seeing its effects already. So, there must be some way of addressing this issue, especially these spirits. Even where I come from, they have become an issue now. They are sold cheaply, they are easily transported in some bottles and those areas where people are idle, in fact, they are affecting them so much that it is also a problem to us. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the other issue is the case of drugs. We have this issue of drugs – things like cocaine and heroine – which, as it was said here, are not locally produced. But we have Kenyans who engage in this trade who actually bring these drugs 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."
}