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{
    "id": 539497,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/539497/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 146,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Wakhungu",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1889,
        "legal_name": "Chrisantus Wamalwa Wakhungu",
        "slug": "chrisantus-wamalwa-wakhungu"
    },
    "content": "are in the Ministry of Health. It does no harm if the Departmental Committee on Health comes up with some amendments to this Bill, so that if it is the issue of authority that they do not want, the Ministry can take that in terms of regulation. We have different departments in the Ministry of Health which have different mandates. I listened keenly and I have heard some people in my constituency who have similar problems, but they cannot speak openly in the African culture. I want to thank hon. Millie and hon. Joyce for being brave and speaking openly about this matter. Not many Kenyans want to speak about this because they will feel embarrassed yet many people are suffering. We put laws in place when we have a vacuum. If there is a vacuum, the law must be there to regulate that. You can imagine somebody having your own child and he does not want to give it to you because there is no legal framework. This matter has been handled through the courts and we have seen court rulings and proposals that we must put a law in place. No other body in this country makes laws apart from Parliament. This Bill is at the right place. My humble request is to the Departmental Committee on Health. Please, come up with your amendments, but let this Bill pass. So many Kenyans are suffering. Everybody would want to have a child. It is not your wish not to have a child. Children are gifts from God. Wherever you are, you have children because God gave them to you. You have done no miracle. If such a thing has happened to other people and they want to have a child, I do not see any problem of having the issue of assisted reproduction. I am humbly requesting my colleagues to support this Bill. Afterwards, we can do some harmonisation. The Bill is only at the Second Reading. We will have to go to the Third Reading and the Committee of the whole House. It is at that juncture that the Departmental Committee on Health can bring the particular amendments to align the Bill. When I listened keenly to their rejection, it is specifically on the fact that there is likely to be abuse and there is a high risk. Now that you have identified these risks, you should mitigate some strategies to counter that. I humbly request us not to kill this Bill. I congratulate the Members for doing this research and coming up with such a wonderful Bill, so that the people who are facing this challenge, it can be sorted out. We should have a clear legal framework within which this issue can be handled once and for all. I support this Bill."
}