HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept
{
"id": 640750,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/640750/?format=api",
"text_counter": 190,
"type": "other",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "or gold, environmental assessment is of importance. In countries where mining started, particularly in Europe in places like Birmingham, you will find huge gullies that were once mines and were left “like that”. Even in Taita-Taveta County, you will find areas which have been left “like that”. People extracted whatever mineral they wanted and they left the place without returning it to its original form. Therefore, Clause 89 takes care of this because it says that the licensee must clearly state that he will return the place in the manner that he found it. In the case of Mui Basin, one of the biggest worries that we have is that if this mining takes place and the coal is finished after 30 years, huge damage would have been done. It is, therefore, important that in the licence, as it is provided in this Bill, it is specifically stated that the land will be returned to its original state. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I went to the Western part of China four years ago to see how mining is done. What is going on in that area is what we would not like to see in this country. In as much as they want this mining to take place, as you travel towards the mining area, all the trees were black. They were not green. Everything around that mining zone was black because of the manner in which the environment was interfered with, the carrying of the coal and the dust that went on. We are told many communities were suffering from various diseases. Therefore, environmental assessment is of importance if we are to ensure that the future generations will benefit from this mining, whether it is gold or any other minerals. We have many examples like in Nigeria where the Ogoni people are now suffering because of irresponsible mining. Therefore, we must make sure that in whatever we do, we do it right, not only for us, but for future generations. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the other issue is that of record keeping. Countries have been exploited in the past by miners. Even the royalties that we are talking about that are going to be of benefit to the communities and counties, will be meaningless, unless a proper record is kept of the extracted minerals and their value. The books of accounts must be kept to ensure that the calculation of these royalties is correct so that whatever is due to the county is correctly recorded and paid accordingly. I say this because we know that we have a lot of countries; I have given an example of the Democratic Republic of Congo where mining has taken place for generations, but the people are getting poorer and poorer, yet the royalties are payable just like in any other place. They do not give the actual value. For example, a gold mining company would say that they mined a billion shillings worth of gold and just declare several millions. Therefore, when you calculate the royalties, peanuts are given to the people or the local authority. This is covered by Clause 69 of record keeping to ensure reporting requirements are properly done. There is no cheating, but people will be getting their rightful share of the royalties as prescribed in this law. Otherwise, it will be meaningless for us to say 20 or 10 per cent and the rest be given to various stakeholders and yet we do not keep proper records. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, again, here comes in caution on the issue of corruption which is so rampant in this country. Unless we apply anti-corruption laws in this sector which is a very lucrative sector, we are bound to find corruption getting into the people who will be working in these areas, particularly in the record keeping. They will be lured The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes"
}