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{
    "id": 54103,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/54103/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 270,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Mudavadi",
    "speaker_title": "The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 84,
        "legal_name": "Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi",
        "slug": "musalia-mudavadi"
    },
    "content": " Mr. Speaker, Sir, I wish to reply. This is, indeed, a precedent-setting occasion because it is one of those occasions where ordinarily, one would be saying: “I wish to thank the hon. Members for their contribution to this Bill.” I think that honour will solely go to Mrs. Odhiambo-Mabona at this stage. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I would like to underscore the fact that although the House will adopt this Bill – I hope - the key issue is that we still have a third opportunity; that is, at the Committee of the whole House stage for the Committees or even hon. Members who have issues to scrutinize this Bill very carefully. Some specific amendments can be proposed at the Committee of the whole House stage. That way, they will have an opportunity to refine the contents of this Bill which is, indeed, very important. I just want to state that there are a number of Bills which relate to the question of constituting companies for business. Three Bills have actually been published. This is the first of the three Bills in a series. It is very important that we, as a nation, adopt these laws because we have been operating on laws that are really archaic when taken in context or it comes to aspects of partnerships and companies. This has been a major obstacle to the business community. So, in replying, I would like to say that this is an important first step in the right direction because you will find that these Bills are intertwined. Therefore, one cannot be read in isolation as such. I think the sequence that was proposed by the Attorney-General was to have this Bill passed and then we move on to the next one which appears on the Order Paper and finally, the bigger one, which will be the Companies Bill. One of the issues that is also being addressed here partially and in more detail in the next Bill, is the issue of receivership and winding up of companies. This is extremely important and it is captured under Part VII, Clause 34. I think these are very important aspects because the process of registration of limited liability companies and their winding up is a process that has been misused a lot by the various business communities, sometimes to defraud either the country or even organizations and individuals. The provisions that are contained in this Bill will make it harder for the fraudsters to get away with these companies. Mr. Speaker, Sir, if this process is followed and the Bill is adopted, aspects that relate to tax evasion are likely to be minimized because there will be greater detail that can be captured in the process of setting up a limited liability partnership. That process would really help the Kenya Revenue Authority to trace the people behind these organizations more effectively and efficiently than it has been in the past. So, I really urge the House to support this Bill, so that we can start setting up better mechanisms. We inherited most of our laws on companies from the British system. The colonial masters then have gone way ahead in updating and reviewing their laws, whether on a limited liability basis or even as companies or the insolvency aspect, and yet we have continued to operate with those very archaic regulations which do not blend in effectively with modern times and with the pace that other developing or developed countries have now adjusted to make the process of incorporating institutions more detailed and better."
}