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{
    "id": 656179,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/656179/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 176,
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    "content": "It is interesting to note that there was no communication or conversation between the Kenya Bureau of Standards and the officials from the state department responsible for construction. Whereas there is a local standard that has been defined – and a lot of effort has gone into coming up with ISO21542 that provides clear guidelines for addressing accessibility in building construction in this country – the officials from the state department indicated that they were unaware of this particular ISO21542 standard that has been developed by the Kenya Bureau of Standards. One wonders why then we need to invest a lot of money in a body like the Kenya Bureau of Standards that does significant research and comes up with standards that are based on other international standards and guidelines, yet no one takes those things seriously. We could then argue that we should just pick the British standard on building and construction that the Kenya Bureau of Standards has attempted to localize. This points to a disjoint in the Government where different arms do not know what is happening. Even without these amendments, there are sufficient regulations, standards and guidelines that should compel anyone putting up a public building to ensure that it meets certain thresholds of accessibility. If you look at what has happened in this country, particularly in Huruma--- Allow me to use this opportunity to convey my condolences to the families and friends of those who perished in the very unfortunate incident. The only uplifting story that we heard today was that a one-year-old child was rescued alive from the rubble after 80 hours; going without food and lying next to a mother who was dead. The death in Huruma is just another example of impunity. We have all sorts of regulations and guidelines on how we should put up buildings in this country, but people flout them, as if breaking the law has become fashionable in this country. As an institution, we are the ones who make the laws, but we also need to be firm on the people who are supposed to enforce them and see to it that they should be followed, otherwise, this nation would not be in mourning. We would not have lost more than 20 able bodied men and women. They died because of greed and corruption in the construction sector in country. The National Construction Authority (NCA) has a mandate to make sure that buildings in this nation meet certain standards. In fact, the body to implement even the amendment we are making to this Bill will be the NCA, yet it has already failed to do some things that are straightforward. There are people in the City – and I dare say close to 90 per cent – who live either in slums or in buildings that are not fit for humans, due to low income earnings. When I started working in this City, I was forced to reside in an apartment in Embakasi that was about ten storeys high. The apartment did not have a lift and reliable piped water. If you live on the eighth floor of an apartment, you have to climb the stairs with a pail of water every day. Those are the conditions under which many Kenyans are forced to live. In fact, whenever we say that the lives of Kenyans are getting better, maybe we are talking about Governors, Members of Parliament and those who are lucky enough to come close to public funds, like the National Youth Service (NYS) funds. We must come up with a formula in this country that will ensure that when we come up with regulations and laws, like the one we are looking at today, enforcement is The electronic version of theSenate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}