Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 602930,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/602930/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 127,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Hargura",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 827,
        "legal_name": "Godana Hargura",
        "slug": "godana-hargura"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise to make a Statement on an issue concerning my county under Standing Order No.45(2)(a). The issue is about prevalence of cancer in parts of Marsabit County. Just before the turn of the millennium in 1998, we had an outbreak of what we refer to as throat and stomach cancer. Those cases have been persistent. There have been several reports of this in the media. The coverage has been done five times since 2004 to date. In the last two years, we had a very detailed coverage on television. Every time this issue comes up, the Government sends teams to go and do some investigations and nothing has come out of that. The first time, it was said that it is the issue of water. Detailed reports on this were done. Testing has been done about five times and it has been ruled out that it is not water. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the last report which was done by the inter-ministerial Committee in 2009 stated very clearly that detailed investigation needs to be done. These cases of cancer are localized. They occur only in Kargi area of Laisamis Constituency and Maikona and Kalacha areas of North Horr Constituency. These centres are occupied by different communities. They are also distant apart, about 60 kilometres apart. In Laisamis Constituency, the lifestyle of the whole community is the same but we are wondering why it is, that all of a sudden, there is an outbreak of cancer in one part of the constituency. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in North Horr Constituency, which is the largest Constituency in this country, about 40,000km2, the cancer occurrence is localized to two centres. Right now, we have lost not less than 500 people within that locality. I remember there is a time that one of our late surgeons, Dr. Alkama, a very selfless person who had been treating people from that area, reported that by 2006 it had reached epidemic proportions because he was treating not less than three persons every month in Nairobi coming from this area. This meant that there were many more who were left behind. Those are the ones who could not make it to town. Many were and are just dying painfully there. Every time this occurred, it appeared in the media and the Government would rush there. There was a time the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) and the National Oil Corporation (NOC) went there. The reports are there. The last inter- ministerial report had very clear recommendations which were not followed. But we ask ourselves: Why is it that this is localized to this part? Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, from 1986 to 1990, there was oil exploration in that part of the country. The major ones were in 1988, 1989 and 1990, where the Kenya Government gave that area to an American Company called Amoco to do oil exploration. Drilling was done within those three centres; near Kargi, Maikona and Kalacha. So, why The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}