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"id": 440956,
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. Ng’ongo",
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"speaker": {
"id": 110,
"legal_name": "John Mbadi Ng'ong'o",
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"content": "for so many years. He was offering service. Then he became the Vice-President of the Republic of Kenya at a time when this country was going through difficult moments. I am saying that, probably, if hon. Kalonzo Musyoka did not make the decision to support the Government of hon. Mwai Kibaki, probably we would not have Kenya today. If the Rt. Hon. Raila Odinga did not accept to share power with His Excellency Mwai Kibaki, then we would not have Kenya today. Therefore, these are people whose service to this nation cannot and should not be underrated in any way. I was not happy when this Bill was taken before the Budget and Appropriations Committee for the insertion of Clause 3 which is indicating that for anyone to benefit, that person should not engage in elective politics. I want to repeat here, that we are providing these retirement benefits to these people who served and are no longer serving in those offices. Just the same way, if today, God forbid, I lose my Suba Parliamentary seat, I will still get benefits. I will be paid retirement benefits without quitting politics. I will still come and contest and be enjoying the benefits. For avoidance of doubt, I want to remind those that are arguing that actually it is already provided for, in Clause 4, that if you get elected, then you should not benefit from this retirement benefit. Or if you occupy any other State office, then your retirement benefits cease. You do not draw your retirement benefits. That should not worry anyone. I think in this country, it is high time we stopped criminalizing elective positions. We are acting in a way as though, if you get to an elective position, then you should be condemned forever. Much of the legislation we pass in this House put a condition that if you were a Member of Parliament in the past five years, you should not get appointed to those positions. Why are we doing such kind of injustice to ourselves? What is wrong with someone being elected? Do I lose all the accounts that I learnt in school just because I have been a Member of Parliament? The answer is no. We should ask ourselves, those of us who are serving even for the first time; this is an opportunity to introduce an amendment to even my Bill, to provide for benefits also to those who have served one term in Parliament. I am waiting to see a Member introducing an amendment to this Bill because it was introduced in the last Parliament and the President refused to assent to it, which I find irregular. He was assenting to his retirement benefit, but denying others. What kind of discrimination is that? Why should you pay a Member of Parliament who has served two terms and not one who has only served one term? That is discrimination. This is the time, if the President rejects such an amendment; we come here, get two-thirds and overrule him. This is something that no one should be ashamed of because it is a fact that you have offered a service for five years and it should be recognized. Allow me to go to the content of the Bill. For the retired Speakers of both the Senate and the National Assembly, I am proposing that we give a lump sum payment on retirement, a sum equal to one and a half years salary paid for each term paid in office. If you have served for only five years - remember hon. Kenneth Otiato Marende, who Kenyans even said made a Solomonic ruling, as we speak, that great Kenyan is not having any retirement benefit paid to him. How unjust can we be? If hon. Marende had not made a ruling on 15th January, 2008, we would not have had a Parliament that time. But, he overruled ODM which voted him into office and he insisted that all of us must swear through the Presidency, which we had refused to do. That is not someone to The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}