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{
    "id": 548776,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/548776/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 440,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Ogolla",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1264,
        "legal_name": "Gideon Ochanda Ogolla",
        "slug": "gideon-ochanda-ogolla"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I really support this Motion. But, at the outset, what we have here is not a matter of dispute. It is a general agreement that money is to be paid. Pensions are to be paid. The main thing is that the Government has simply refused to pay and so, it is the refusal to pay that we are talking about. It needs to be taken to that direction such that it is very clear that there are consequences and some of those consequences cannot be what has been in court and the back and forth issues. But some of those retired teachers can take additional or further action by taking the Government in a different direction for discrimination and treating them with indignity. There are all manner of rights issues that are closer to those that the teachers can pick up. The Government is more likely to lose more if it is not advised at this time that it goes ahead and pays. The issue of pension is not a privilege but a right. It is the money that those teachers have contributed. Half of it has been contributed by them and we do not understand why they cannot be given back their money. It is a big issue that if the Government is not listening, this is not right. Looking through the Report and the recommendations, the matter has gone back and forth. It has been here in Parliament five different times and it is here today for the fifth time, if you look at the Report very well. The matter has gone to National Treasury. It is with the Attorney-General (AG). The matter has been discussed at length and it has been agreed that payment needs to be made. Now, what I think the Petitioners want is either, for us as Parliament to tell them we are unable or we can and that is what is in front of us at the moment. Either Parliament is able to do certain things or it can no longer help because this is like a final stage. In my view, the recommendations brought by the Committee needed to be stronger than what we have. One, the whole issue of the Committee would have recommended that they go ahead to include some of those monies we are talking about and discuss this with our own Budget and Appropriations Committee. The matter needs to be discussed between the Committees and we place figures and we make it mandatory that payments must be done. Two, it would bring in more sanctions against the departments and the officers that are supposed to be doing this. If it is the Attorney- General, we needed to have proposed sanctions against him. If it is the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, we needed to have proposed serious sanctions against it because as it is, we are still saying we need to uphold the decision of the High Court and yet, the whole issue that is in front of us is enforcement. Not more pleadings and not saying who should do what. Nothing has been enforced and we know that those teachers need to be paid. In my view, in as much the Committee has brought those recommendations, I want to believe that it is really late that 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."
}