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{
    "id": 3987,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/3987/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 266,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Ms. Karua",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 166,
        "legal_name": "Martha Wangari Karua",
        "slug": "martha-karua"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I am also imagining the experiences people go through when they go to search for information at the Lands Registry. We hear the Government blaming the Syokimau residents who have been traumatized by the demolitions. All those around Nairobi and elsewhere, who have been traumatized by demolitions and evictions, when they go to search at the Lands Office, they are falling at the hands of fraudsters and given searches which are not authentic. When there is transparency in the way the information is stored and accessed, then the public is more likely to get accurate information. If there is any inaccuracy, the time to respond and detect it, is much sooner. This is a system that we needed like yesterday. That is why I began by congratulating my colleague, Dr. Ottichilo. Even at the Registrar of Companies, searches are still taking long. Registering companies is taking long because they too have to search for information to know that there is no other company by those names. They need certain details of people and have to liaise with other Government departments. When everything is on this system and the information is easily accessible, even Government offices will discharge their responsibilities well. This is a Motion that when implemented - I will not say if, because Parliament must force implementation of what it passes - will unlock the potential of this country. Recently, I asked a Question about the number of patients with fractures at the Kerugoya District Hospital and those needing metal appliances to fix their fractures. In supplementary, I asked the Minister regarding all our public hospitals. That is not information the Minister could stand there and give readily, but it is information that would have been available not just to the Ministry for purposes of planning, but even to us as legislators. We would not have spent the time asking the Minister information that is at our fingertips. This information would have helped the Government to formulate policy and to realize that by having people stay in hospital because they cannot afford the metal appliances that would fix their fractures, the Government ends up spending much more money on their upkeep. Therefore, it would make economical sense to supply all accident victims with that sort of treatment, so that they can leave the hospital beds for others. I am only saying this to underscore the importance of the GIS for purposes of planning. Today, the information available to us, even about our constituencies and any region in Kenya, can only be found in Google and we cannot complain whether Google is accurate or not. That is the information that we get. It is the only available quick information. How about us, as a country, providing this information to every Kenyan and to anybody who wants to know anything about Kenya? In procurement, what encourages rent seeking is the opaqueness. If you can track procurement online, it means it is open for everybody to see and it becomes much more difficult to try and seek to manipulate or alter the specifications or even to help alter for a preferred contractor when the process is on because it is exposed. This is about transparency, accountability and planning. This is a Motion that I would call on colleagues to pass, so that we not only fulfill the requirements of Article 35, but we do ourselves a favour for having a much desired planning tool. With those many remarks, I beg to support."
}