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{
    "id": 578001,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/578001/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 117,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Oyugi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 444,
        "legal_name": "Augostinho Neto Oyugi",
        "slug": "augostinho-neto-oyugi"
    },
    "content": "Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, having said that, I think the Report of the Mediation Committee is very good. I like the fact that they are talking about the inclusion of the Director of Veterinary Services. This is because, if at all you are going to talk about animals and foodstuff, there ought to be people with expertise on animal stuff and agricultural issues. It is very interesting that someone, in the drafting stage, included the Attorney-General, as a member of the Board. I think he is very busy and there is a lot for him to do as opposed to sitting in a Board for Fertilizers and Animal foodstuffs, because of the reasons that the Mediation Committee has given in this Report. The Attorney-General is supposed to be the chief advisor of the Government on legal issues. I think the Constitution, 2010 gives a distinct role to the Attorney-General, as opposed to what was known before it. I think moving forward, whoever is proposing the composition of boards should avoid the inclusion of the Attorney-General in some of these boards. He should be free to give basic legal advice and advise Government on substantive disputes arising from the Board. This is because if at all he is a member of that Board, then his legal advice would have been part of the whole problem and, it will be difficult to get independent legal advice from him. I really think his inclusion was a fault. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, the Mediation Committee acknowledges and is of the view that the Board should comprise of persons who can offer technical advice on matters of fertilizers. Having agreed thus, you do not see the Mediation Committee putting those thoughts of a person who can give technical advice. That does not exist because they only have the person from the veterinary office. I think they should have gone ahead to put that inclusion. This is because it is something good and if at all they did not give it effect, then the reasoning of the Report faults. You have a good reasoning but it needs to be reflected in the recommendation, or the final product you have on the Bill. Lastly, on the mediated version, I have issues with the process of picking the Chairperson. It says here that the Chairperson will be competitively sourced and appointed by the Cabinet Secretary. A blanket statement that they will be competitively sourced - whatever it means, differs from one person to another. There ought to be distinct ways on how the Chairperson of this Board is selected. Otherwise, you will end up with a Cabinet Secretary (CS), not all of them, who would constantly give you people who favour other interests. That is fairly dangerous. There is not much we can speak to this Report because it is simply one that is procedural. We should not let loose this type of legislation in next mediation committees which I am hoping will be composed for purposes of issues that are fairly substantive. Very lastly, the Bill that passed, because of course it is not part of this content, was to do with veterinary issues and fertilizers. Kenya is an agricultural country and 70 per cent of her income is basically from agriculture. We need to be equitable in the distribution of our fertilizers and what we do with livestock. For example, there are parts of northern Kenya that could export a lot of beef and other foodstuffs that could not only be earning Kenya lots of income but also sustaining the economy of Kenya. But because of the inequity that we have seen in the past Governments and regimes, this has not been so. You find that half of the parts of western Kenya and Nyanza that are supposed to be sufficient and agriculturally productive do not benefit from fertilizers and other productions. If we want to move Kenya forward, be food sufficient and if agriculture is at all going to be the driver of our economy, there ought to be equity. These 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."
}