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"content": "prayers, both traditional and religious, to salvage it from where we have fallen short of the glory. We need patriots like the late hon. John Michuki, may the Lord rest his soul in peace. He single-handedly used the relevant laws within three months to deal with eucalyptus trees. He gave directives to the district commissioners and officers and we saw those directives being followed in Murang’a. Within a month or so, you also saw the said hon. Michuki cleaning the Nairobi River. Why do we need to amend these laws if we cannot amend our souls and stand for this nation? Why do we have these myriads of laws? You have heard Sen. Wangari mentioning several laws which touch on the environment like the Mining Act and other Acts which touch on the same issues. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, where I come from in the County of Nyamira, there is a junction called Konate, which is a riparian area that supplies water to my home area. Ten years ago, a private investor was stopped from dealing with that area, where he wanted to put up a petrol station. Three months ago, because of the lack of will power, enforcement officers and laws from the county government, he has put up a structure on the riparian area which he intends to be a petrol station. I have personally written to the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) and there is no response. The county government is handicapped and this guy is moving on. Gusiiland, which was sometimes referred to as “God’s bathroom” is lacking water as we speak. If you go to Nyamira Town, you will find guys pushing mikokoteni, carrying water jerricans. If you go to Kisii Town, there is no water in an area which people referred to as “God’s bathroom!” The danger caused by eucalyptus trees in Kisii County is enormous. One blue gum tree takes 12 gallons of water a day. How many millions of trees do we have in that county? So, on my part, these laws, just like the many policies we have in this country, can just be a mirage if we cannot satisfy our souls and if we cannot have selfless patriots who can use the relevant laws to deal with these issues. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, if you go to the areas of this country where electronics, for instance, are imported, do we have disposal mechanisms? Yes, we have. Are they followed? No, they are not followed. Then what are we talking about? We have the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) but, once in a while maybe by virtue of either the media or a few patriots who raise the alarm on what has been done, then you see them just standing up and saying that they have done this or “we are destroying that.” This country requires more than laws; this country, maybe, requires education to be inculcated to our young children in primary schools to understand the role of defending their country in terms of environmental protection. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, you mentioned about the ozone layer. Most people in this country think that the ozone layer is just a laughing stock of the West but it has affected this country. For the last two or three years, you have seen what happens in July; the cold spell of July has extended. The farmers in this country were waiting for rains which never came on time. The effects of the ozone layer - the El Nino and the La Nina effect is going to be felt effectively. Yesterday, for those who watched television, we saw that there are floods in Mombasa and more is going to come. Are we prepared? Are there mechanisms to sensitize our people? Have Government agencies sensitized our people that the effects of the heavy rains, which have delayed are going to be rampant? Are The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}