Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 474733,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/474733/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 636,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Gichigi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1909,
        "legal_name": "Samuel Kamunye Gichigi",
        "slug": "samuel-kamunye-gichigi"
    },
    "content": "As we speak, we are exploiting soils and indigenous forests. Literally, we have cleared everything and our great grandchildren will have challenges knowing what this country had. We are almost wiping out the animals this country was given by God. We are clearing elephants and rhinos. What are we going to retain for our great grandchildren? I, therefore, suggest that we have that particular amendment so that this generation does not use all that we get from those minerals. Hon. Deputy Speaker, I am happy that this particular Bill has provisions forcing investors to employ Kenyans. I implore the Committee to expand that particular clause so that communities neighbouring the mining areas benefit in terms of employment, especially where we do not have the technical skills required. They must benefit. Hon. Deputy Speaker, we have had serious problems in this country, especially from multinationals who come to this country to do business. We can see most of these minerals; including petroleum, being extracted by multinationals. The companies have been practising what is called transfer-pricing. They lie to us that they have bought equipment at high prices and when they export the final product, they pretend that they are selling it at a very cheap price. It is found that most of them have been operating in this country for years, but they keep on making returns of losses in their accounts. You will find that these people do not pay taxes but instead, cheat us as a country. Hon. Deputy Speaker, I am requesting the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and the Treasury to put in place measures to ensure that they have trained enough officers to deal with accounting, trade and taxation on minerals and petroleum. It is important that this be done, otherwise, we do not need investors who come to this county to reap from our resources and at the end of the day, they do not give back to use what is due. It is also important we revisit the laws that take care of the environment. We do not want to leave our land with huge holes and then every other day we hear that a child has drowned in such huge holes. It is important that whenever we carry out mining activities, land is refilled. Anybody going to Mombasa can see what Bamburi Cement Company has done. They have created a very good park along Malindi Road. You cannot even imagine that they had excavated cement from that area. Therefore, it is important that refilling of excavated land be done. The other thing that we must do as Kenyans is that, it is important that we enlighten the communities where these minerals are being extracted. We should not become hostile to investors. We must make sure that we befriend them even as much as we are asking them to employ our people. We must make sure that we are also friendly to them so that we do not scare them away. As I wind up, this Bill is overdue. Let us make sure that the majority of our youth who are out there and who have become a serious security threat to this country are properly engaged so that they can do something. With those remarks, I support this particular Bill, subject to those many amendments."
}