Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 563218,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/563218/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 224,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Kubai Iringo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1574,
        "legal_name": "Cyprian Kubai Iringo",
        "slug": "cyprian-kubai-iringo"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this Bill. I stand to support the Bill. I also recommend an amendment which I believe will make it stronger - like my colleague, hon. Kibunguchy, has said. The sector of security guards has been taken lightly. However, in essence, it is quite an important sector because it supplements our disciplined forces that are recruited by the Government. Those guards are usually recruited haphazardly. We have never taken stock of how many security companies we have in Kenya. Their mode of recruitment is quite haphazard. They are mostly family entities where people recruit friends, relatives, family members or people from their localities, who do not even have qualifications or capacity to do that work. Given that jobs are quite rare in Kenya today - and everybody is craving for, at least, a source of livelihood - it has also been used all along as a way of exploiting or misusing desperate people in need of jobs. That is because there is no law guiding the owners of those security companies or a clear-cut policy on how they should handle or engage the guards. They end up exploiting them. At the end of the day, they earn a lot of money from the people who engage or contract them. However, the guards who do the actual “donkey work” get peanuts. Most of them are night guards who spend a lot of hours in the night working. They even contract diseases because of the cold weather. They also risk being killed by thugs. It happens now and then in Kenya. When thugs strike, the first person to be hit is the watchman! So, they need insurance and proper remuneration. The recruitment system must be above board, so that we do not engage crooks in the noble job of guarding our homes, businesses and other premises. It should be noted that those guards supplement the efforts of the Government as far as security is concerned. Therefore, I recommend that this Bill should be amended. We should include a clause which says that once one is vetted and employed, there should be a body, as the Bill recommends, which should manage all of them. They should be allowed to carry guns so that, at least, you can know that somebody is taking care of your family and yourself when you are asleep. It will also be for their security. When the Al-Shabaab terrorists struck during the Westgate Mall attack, they killed the watchmen first. They did not have anything but rungus . However, if there was a little resistance there, they could have, at least, repulsed or engaged them, which would have resulted in the rescue coming early and minimising the losses that we experienced during that time. I can see my time is running out. I really feel that, that body will help those who join that sector to be disciplined, well remunerated and protected. They will also have an insurance cover. They should also be armed so that they can be confident and capable of repulsing any danger and protecting themselves. I support."
}