Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 419099,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/419099/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 142,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Dr.) Eseli",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 141,
        "legal_name": "David Eseli Simiyu",
        "slug": "david-eseli"
    },
    "content": "find that the drugs manufactured locally have now become more expensive than the drugs imported, yet the drug industry in Kenya actually serves East and Central Africa. The drug manufacturers in Kenya control 75 per cent of drug market in East and Central Africa. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, by adding VAT on raw materials, we price our products out of market. Therefore, very soon factories will close down; our children who have studied pharmacy and pharmaceutical technologies and who have gained experience in drug manufacturing are going to lose that chance of being employed. Therefore, in other words, what we are doing with VAT Act, as it stands now, is killing the medicine industry. So, if hon. Ng’ongo will agree with me, he should add an amendment to further remove VAT on raw materials for local manufacturers of drugs so that we do not appear to be promoting foreign industry rather than local industry; especially when the Jubilee Government has vowed to increase jobs. If they are going to increase jobs and the factories start closing down, they will be reducing jobs. They will, therefore, defeat their own manifesto. It is in their interest that hon. Ng’ongo brings this amendment and we support it. Finally, I would like to say that what hon. Ng’ongo has done is very important. He has looked at the production side. We only look at eating the cake, but we never look at how to bake the cake. But hon. Ng’ongo has looked at how to bake the cake, in the sense that a lot of VAT on the production side needs to be removed to make our goods more competitive and more affordable to our people. It is very important especially on the medical side; with mosquito nets too so that we can improve the usage of mosquito nets. Although I dare say that mosquito nets are not the only way of preventing malaria, in fact, they are the worst way of preventing malaria. Otherwise, they will be all over the country hiding under mosquito nets from 6.00 p.m. to 6.00 a.m., and then no work will go on. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I brought a Motion to this Parliament to say that mosquito nets should not be the only means of preventing malaria. We should look at in-house sprays. That is where hon. Ng’ongo comes in on pesticides for in-door spray. That is the best way to prevent malaria. Mosquito nets are just there to promote the industry; that they can produce mosquito nets and sell them en masse, but they do not prevent malaria. That is why mosquito nets have been around for many years, but malaria is still with us."
}