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{
    "id": 656238,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/656238/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 235,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "The Senate Majority Leader",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 440,
        "legal_name": "Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen",
        "slug": "kipchumba-murkomen"
    },
    "content": "(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I take this opportunity to thank all colleagues for the wonderful contributions they have made in support and in improving this critical Bill. It is said that you judge the strength of a nation or a society by how well it treats the vulnerable. It is, therefore, important for me to say that the overwhelming support this Bill has received in this House is an indication that our country is strong and we have reached a level where we want to fix especially those aspects of our society that relate to strengthening the vulnerable in our midst. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I have had the privilege of listening to much of the debate and contributions. Allow me to summarize three things that this Bill does. The first one provides that going forward, there will be no approval for the construction of any road or building or premises if such plans do not demonstrate that there will be access for PWDs. There must be lanes designated for PWDs. If there are overhead bridges on a road, they must not just provide stairs for the overhead bridge but they must also provide a passage for people on wheelchairs and other PWDs. It is the same if it is a premise. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, we had a very bad incident in Huruma where people lost their lives. Of course, we have reports indicating that part of the reason why the fatalities occurred was because the building was not approved et cetera . I am just wondering whether, over and above the normal approvals of making sure that our buildings are safe and strong, it should not be made mandatory, going forward - and this is what this Bill is trying to do - that you cannot have a building that does not provide access by PWDs. I am sure that if this is provided, in the future, it will provide an opportunity for a PWD to escape the same way a person without disability would escape from a building in case of a disaster. I am a proud Kenyan today as I look at this Bill. Of course, as many colleagues have said, our problem lies in implementation of some of these laws. It is a shame that we have to resort to legislation to fix some of these things. I think time has come in our country when we need to take some of our responsibilities a bit more seriously. I am sorry to give examples of countries other than my own because I am a patriot. However, truth be told, if a building collapsed in some countries, heads would have rolled by now. In many cases, it would have been voluntary. The Cabinet Secretary (CS), Principal Secretary (PS), the governor in charge and people approving these plans would have taken responsibility on their own volition. That is unlikely to happen because nobody wants to take responsibility or resign from public office. In some countries, I have seen ministers of transport resigning simply because trains have collided and the minister does not say: “I do not drive the trains.” He says: “I 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."
}