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{
    "id": 494675,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/494675/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 123,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Prof.) Lonyangapuo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 447,
        "legal_name": "John Krop Lonyangapuo",
        "slug": "john-lonyangapuo"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I want to thank Sen. Wetangula and all the colleagues who have spoken before me for remembering to bring this Motion after the recess to discuss the character of a man who left us. He was not just an ordinary Kenyan; he was a professor of high standing here in Kenya and outside. These are the type of people who made the Kenyan flag fly high in the world particularly in the academia. He can be equated to some of the athletes that have brought fame to our land. Despite this, it is only people outside Kenya who give them recognition. What a pity that we end up proving the saying that a prophet is never recognized at home. We only talk about them when they are no more. Mombasa and its children from will have a testimony of somebody that should be emulated particularly in academia. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I keep looking at the results of the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) and Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) every year and sometimes the coastal regions do not perform quite well. When we look at it, we almost say that we need people like Mazrui to be around so that people can have examples or testimonies of people in order to be encouraged. He had to leave Kenya to serve the academic world in America. The problem is the way we do not recognize and take value of ourselves. We are very good at giving tribute when we are burying people. We do not talk about them when they are alive. I do not know if it is African or Kenyan nature but it is good to value people when they are alive. We know that they can give us more if we talk about them and recognise them wherever they are, and give them assignments to do. I am happy that the former President Kibaki identified and made professor Mazrui the Chancellor of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, which is not the same again. We have people that we may need to tap and talk about when they are still alive, so that we challenge the Committee that is dealing with Mashujaa to do the profiling of every Kenyan that we need to be proud of while they are still alive. There people like Prof. Ngugi in the academia. How much does it take us to bring him to give a lecture or even talk to us as politicians or even in the academia? We only take advantage when he comes to talk to the civil society, we see him around but we want people---"
}