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{
    "id": 501177,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/501177/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 356,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Ng’ongo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 110,
        "legal_name": "John Mbadi Ng'ong'o",
        "slug": "john-mbadi"
    },
    "content": "transport system where we have a reliable transport system not only the buses but also the railway; proper town or urban railway system. That is what is happening in other developed countries. But if we insist on widening the roads and buying more cars, still those roads will be congested until there will be no space to expand. Those who are coming up with the master plan because I hear there is a proposed master plan that has been worked out for the Nairobi City, I pray that it is taken to other major towns of the country. Apart from Kisumu and Mombasa, I would add that even Eldoret is becoming a real problem. It has only one major street and if you are driving through Eldoret you go through a lot of stress. What were the wordings of the Motion? It was that this House is urging the Government to urgently acquire the land from the Railways Pensioners Scheme for the expansion and modernisation of the Jogoo and Landhies roads. That is commendable if there is land lying somewhere that is not properly utilized. Actually, if you read the chapter on land and the legislations that we were supposed to come up with, we were supposed to come up with proper land use system in this country which we have not done. It is high time that the Ministry of Lands together with the National Land Commission (NLC) stopped their unnecessary wars and came up with a proper land use mechanism in this country because that is lacking. We need rules and regulations which were supposed to be developed out of the various land laws that we passed in the last Parliament so that this country can properly utilize the land resource that we have in this country. Land is limited but if we do not utilize it properly then we will get maximum economic benefit out of our land which is God-given to us. Therefore, acquiring land compulsorily to do something that is of more economic value is commendable and acceptable but I would urge that when the Executive sets into Motion the acquisition of this land, we need to ask ourselves who this land belongs to. The land belongs to the Railways Pensioners Scheme. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, therefore, if the land is to be taken from its owners, they should get proper compensation. The pensioners are people who have left employment. Therefore, they should live decent lives. If you take their land, you should compensate them adequately, so that they do not lose out for a mistake that was not theirs. I want to urge this House that as we pass this Motion, we need to critically look at the issue of congestion in Nairobi City in a broader perspective. We need not to be narrow-minded and look at Jogoo Road and Landis Road. There is no single road in this country where there is no traffic jam. If you take Waiyaki Way out of town, through Westlands, it is a nightmare. When I want to leave for my constituency, I have to plan for two hours just to exit the City of Nairobi. The time you take to travel from Parliament Buildings to Westlands is equal to the time you take to travel from Westlands to Narok. It is a serious thing. First, it is time consuming. Second, it is wasteful in terms of the expenditure we go through on the roads as well as the opportunity cost. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I know that some of my colleagues want to contribute to this Motion. Since it is a Motion I would support it, but if it was a Bill probably we would need to do it differently. I was about to forget to say that, on the amendment that was brought here, I still have a feeling that it was not very necessary. As a House, we need not get into operational matters. If we get involved in too much of the work of the Executive, just like what is happening between Parliament and the Judiciary, 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."
}