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{
    "id": 603361,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/603361/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 240,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Ms.) Sunjeev",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13136,
        "legal_name": "Sunjeev Kour Birdi",
        "slug": "sunjeev-kour-birdi"
    },
    "content": "No, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I advocate against corruption. Sometimes we speak so fast that some words slip out. Thank you for correcting me. As I was saying, if you give hand outs and you do not collect the same, then you are a sinner for giving handouts, and a sinner for taking one as well. The bone of contention in this Bill is in Article 66, which talks about commencement of building where an applicant is granted development permission for building works within five years. A lot of people are making noise because developers say five years is not enough. It takes one year to get a licence from the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA). People have a lot of problems as far as infrastructure is concerned. The common citizens say that it is better and cheaper to build on a plot than buying a completed house. It is common knowledge that developers sell on off-plan basis cheaper than when they sell the same finished product. A lot of people buy off-plan units. The mortgage and interest rates paid for such developments are quite high. Many people are finding it quite difficult to raise the money. Five years is contentious. I will compare that to the UK, once again. If you submit a plan to the county, it gets obsolete after five years, and you have to re-apply using your old plan. I understand that people will find it difficult to accept but we have to re-look at the five-year term. Five years is a sufficient period for people to go ahead with their construction. This Bill seeks to bring some form of consistency in the way construction is done. We do not even have to look far. If you visit Lungalunga slums in Nairobi’s Industrial Area, you see that people have built next to the railway. That is quite astonishing. Who gives them permission to build next to the railway? Buildings are brought down but you find people going back to the same area to do construction. When we talk about construction and developers, experts say that the demand for housing in Kenya is more than the supply. Developers rush to put up buildings to meet the supply. They do so without proper planning. Consequently, they put up buildings which are not up to the required standards. Therefore, we should do proper planning as a country to contribute positively in nation building in this particular sector. With those remarks, I beg to support."
}