Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 546924,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/546924/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 354,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Kang’ata",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1826,
        "legal_name": "Irungu Kang'ata",
        "slug": "irungu-kangata"
    },
    "content": "Hon. Deputy Speaker, I beg to move that the Higher Education Loans Board (Amendment) Bill be now read a Second Time. I am proposing that we amend the law to include two students’ representatives in the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB). One will be from a public university and the other one will be from a private university. Secondly, I am proposing that the Members who have then been included from the students body to be elected by the student leaders on a rotational basis and from the respective public and private universities and they shall not serve for a period exceeding two years. The rationale of this amendment is that one, in Tanzania, students are part of the higher education loans board. Two, we need to hear the voice of students inside the board. Students are the clients of the HELB and their voice has continuously been excluded from the management of HELB. It will be democratic where we give them an opportunity to be elected and serve in the HELB. They will bring the perspective of students into the management of the loans. Thirdly, I wish to propose that a student who is a minor and wishes to be considered for a grant of a higher education loan should be entitled to make an application through a parent or a guardian. Fourthly, I am also proposing that where a student who is a minor has been granted a loan, the loan shall be transferred to the student’s name upon attaining the age of the majority of that student. The rationale is that presently as we speak, there are so many young people who are yet to reach 18 years and are now joining universities. This has to do with several reasons. So many children are starting Standard One when they are yet to attain five years or six years of age. As a result, those students if they excel in education and they do not repeat – it is the Government’s policy that students should not be made to repeat - they complete Form Four when they are about 16 years or 17 years. Since the time the Deputy President of this county was the Cabinet Secretary for Education, he brought very good reforms in HELB. He did away with the requirement of students waiting for two years before joining the university. As a result, students are coming out of Form Four and directly transiting into the universities. We do have so many students who are 17 years old joining campus. Ideally when you look at the present law, there is no reason why HELB should not be giving those students loan. The current law talks about an applicant, but when I made inquiries with HELB as to why they are refusing to do that, they reverted to contract law. The contract law, of course, states that you can only contract between adults unless you make arrangements for guardianship. For us to navigate that legal landmine, I am proposing these amendments so that those many young children who are joining universities---The earlier you get educated, 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."
}