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"id": 65819,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/65819/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Eng. Gumbo",
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"speaker": {
"id": 24,
"legal_name": "Nicholas Gumbo",
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"content": "On 10th March, 2003, a patient died at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH). Three things were known about the patient; his name was Naftali Temu, he came from Nyamira District in Kenya and he had died from complications arising from liver/kidney failure and prostate cancer. Some things were not quite well known about the patient and one of them was that in 1968--- I think 25 years before that, he was part of the great Kenyan contingent that took part in the Summer Olympics in Mexico City from 12th October to 27th October that year. That contingent included some of the greatest sportsmen and women this country has ever known such as Kipchoge Keino, Naftali Temu himself, Amos Biwott, Wilson Kiprogut, Benjamin Kogo, Daniel Rudisha, Charles, Asati, Naftali Bon, Hezekiah Nyamau and the boxer, Daniel Waruinge, to name but a few. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, in those Olympics, Mr. Naftali Temu went ahead to compete in three events, the 10,000 metres, the 5,000 metres and the marathon. To date, Mr. Naftali Temuâs place in Kenyaâs history is cemented because, not only did he compete in the 10,000 metres, but he became the first man in the history of this country to win Kenya an Olympic gold medal. In so doing, Mr. Naftali Temu provoked the playing of the Kenya National Anthem in any Olympic stadium in the world. Perhaps, it is easy to ignore Mr. Temuâs achievements, but when you look at the quality of athletes he beat to win a gold medal then you have to give him some respect. They included people like Mr. Mohammed Gammoudi of Tunisia, the great Mr. Mamu Wolde of Ethiopia and the great Mr. Ron Clarke of Australia. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, a few days after winning the Olympic gold medal in 10,000 metres, he took part in the 5,000 metres and he won a bronze medal losing narrowly to his compatriot and great Kenyan Olympian, Mr. Kipchoge Keino. Four days after that, with blisters all over his feet, he decided to enter the marathon, but like all human beings, limitations could not let him win a medal and he completed at number 19 in the marathon. In my view, Mr. Naftali Temu is a great Kenyan in any description. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, today if you mentioned the name âRobert Oukoâ the name that comes to mind is that of my late brother-in-law, our famous Foreign Affairs Minister, the late Dr. Robert Ouko the politician. A lot of Kenyans have forgotten that before Robert Ouko the politician came to the scene, there was another Robert Ouko who was part of the great quartet comprising of Charles Asaki, Hezekiah Nyamau, Julius Sang and Robert Ouko himself, who to date, remain the only Kenyans to have ever won this country a gold medal in the sprints when they won four by four metres relay in Munich in 1972. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, our sportsmen and sportswomen bring us great joy when they win in the field, both in the country and outside the country. We all come together as Kenyans without caring where we come from--- I remember in 1988 I was a student at the University of Nairobi when our great gold medalists; Paul Ereng, Peter Rono, John Ngugi, Julius Kariuki and the late Robert Wangila Napunyi came from Seoul, South Korea. We all poured into the streets. We did not care that Peter Rono was a Kalenjin. Nobody cared that Paul Ereng was a Turkana. Nobody cared that John Ngugi and Julius Kariuki were Kikuyus. We all came together as Kenyans to celebrate Kenyan heroes. The joy in the country on the day our great sportsmen and sportswomen came back from Seoul was unspeakable. We were all running everywhere, hugging each other and generally celebrating. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, following the unfortunate events of the 2007 elections after which post-election violence erupted I do believe in my heart that the achievement of our sportsmen and sportswomen in Beijing in the Olympics of 2008, did a lot to cool down the national temperatures. In fact, when we won six gold medals for the first time, I have never seen Kenya being in such a celebratory mood. To me sports remain the easiest route to national cohesion, integration and the annihilation of the one enemy that has pushed back the promise of Kenya and that is negative ethnicity. Sports remains the one way to bring this country together. When our sportsmen and sportswomen win nobody cares where they come from. We all celebrate them as Kenyans. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is easy to ignore what our Kenyan sportsmen and sportswomen have achieved, but look at the region. Since we won our first Olympic gold medal in Mexico in 1968, to date, Kenya has won 23 Olympic gold medals and has produced 25 Olympic gold medalists because Mr. Kipchoge Keino has won two Olympic gold medals and there was the relay team of Munich in 1972. If you look at the region, Tanzania, for example, has never won a single Olympic gold medal. In fact, the only time Tanzania won an Olympic medal was in 1988 through two gentlemen called Suleiman Nyambui and Filbert Bayi and this was because, Kenya under pressure from America, refused to take part in the Moscow Olympic games. Our neighbour to the west, Uganda has, to date, won only one Olympic gold medal through a man called John Akibwa in 1972 Olympics. We have only one other world beater, a lady called Dorcus Inzikuru. This is just this region. Burundi has won no Olympic gold medal, Rwanda has won no Olympic gold medal and to the best of my knowledge Sudan is yet to win an Olympic gold medal. In the whole region, Kenya is the only country which has won 23 gold medals. I do not think that even the Democratic Republic of Congo, with all their population and size, has won any Olympic gold medal. If you compare 23 Olympic gold medalists and considering that we skipped the Montreal Olympic games in 1976 and Moscow Olympic games in 1980, then it is truly a huge achievement which is worth celebrating. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, that is why in this Motion I am proposing that we must honor our athletes both in life and in death. It is very saddening to see the situation being experienced by our sportsmen and sportswomen. Right now, as you know, one of our leading lady boxers is in hospital, probably, suffering from neglect. Who knows? We heard the sad story of Mr. Henry Rono who broke all the world records there were to break in the late 1970s, but ended up cleaning cars in a basement apartment in the USA. These are very sad situations. The few athletes who have made it have actually come up through their own effort, largely. For example, we have Mr. William Tanui who is doing very well in Eldoret but largely through his own effort. We also have Mr. William Kiptanui. So, we want to stop this. We must honour our athletes. If there are true heroes in Kenya, it is our sportsmen and women. There is no question about it. But these are the most neglected people. On promulgation day we saw them being paraded as heroes. Where did they go after that? Nobody cares. Nobody thinks about these people. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am through this Motion proposing that we must establish a fund. These people are not many. We have only had 25 gold medalists since Kenya started participating in the Olympics. Of course there are other sportsmen and sportswomen in other disciplines, but in my view, the greatest achievers in Kenya have been our athletes. To win an Olympic gold medal in simple terms simply means if all the seven billion people in the world were put to run, you become number one. So, really it is a big achievement which we have to respect. We need to set a fund to help our athletes both in life and in death, posthumously. We also need to rename our streets after them. Why are our streets still holding colonial names? I do not know who these people are. When I move around I see Ralph Bunche Road, Marcus Garvey, among others. I see those colonial names. They mean nothing to me. If there was a Paul Ereng Street, I can associate with it. If there was a Peter Rono Street, I can associate with it. If there was a Pamela Jelimo Street, I can associate with it because I know what they have done for our country. We also need to set up an insurance fund to help these people both in life and in death. As I said, how many true achievers do we have in this country? We have a handful. This Government surely can afford to give insurance to these great Kenyans, so that they can have a good life and their families after them when they are gone. If you go to America, one of the first things you see are billboards of their great sportsmen and sportswomen. There are billboards of Ed Moses and Karl Luis. Why are we not doing it here? If you walk through Busia, JKIA, Moi International Airport, there is nothing. Why are we shy to celebrate our heroes? Let us have large billboards. As I said, Kenya has had great sportsmen and sportswomen in all fields; in football, hockey and women volleyball. However, I am more particularly concerned with our athletes because of the exceptional achievement. To win an Olympic medal is not easy. That is why we should proudly let the whole world know when visitors come here that in 1968 in Mexico, we won three gold medals through Mr. Kipchoge Keino, Mr. Naftali Temu and Mr. Amos Biwott. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, when visitors come here, they should proudly know that in Munich in 1972, we won gold medals through Kipchoge Keino, Julius Sang, Robert Ouko, Charles Asati and Ezekiah Nyamau. When we come through our airports, we should proudly see displays of Julius Korir, the only man to win a gold medal in Los Angeles. We should also be celebrating William Tanui and Matthew Terer, the two men who won us gold medals in 1992 in Barcelona. In Atlanta, Joseph Keter won a gold medal in 3,000 meters steeplechase. In Sidney Australia, who can forget the epic fight between Noah Ngenây and Hicham El Guerrouj? The whole country came to a standstill when Ngenây beat El Guerrouj. Unbeatable, Guerrouj almost quit athletics. Let us celebrate Noah Ngenây and Reuben Kosgey, our gold medalists in Sydney. In athletics, although we did not do well, Ezekiel Kemboi brought us gold. Let us celebrate him. Let us celebrate our gold medalists in Beijing, Pamela Jelimo, Bridgit Kipruto, Wilfred Bungei, Nancy Jebet Langat, Samuel Wanjiru and Asbel Kiprop. Those are the heroes of Kenya. Finally, as I conclude, I would like to give you the story of two countries. In 1972, a man called John Akibwa, unknown at that time, won Ugandaâs only gold medal in 400 meters, beating people who were well known at the time. At that time, you are aware that Uganda was ruled by a man called Idi Amin. Amin was very concerned with the fame that Akibwa had gained from the Olympics and was unsure what to do with him. However, having searched his soul, he thought it was better for him to let the man be and enjoy the fame. He renamed Lira Stadium Akibwa Stadium and, to date, if you go to Kampala, you will find Akibwa Stadium there. When Akibwa died in 1997, he was given a state funeral attended by none other than the Uganda Prime Minister at the time, Mr. Kintu Musoke. If you move to the East, Akibwaâs equivalent is Naftali Temu. Temu died at a general ward at the Kenyatta National Hospital on 10th March, 2003. Previously, he had been diagnosed to have cancer of the prostrate and kidney problems which only required Kshs60,000 to treat. When Temu died and was buried in Burabu Kisii, the only prominent Government officer at the funeral was the Assistant Chief of the area. Two pioneer Olympic Gold medalists, two different countries, two different treatments! With those few remarks, I would like to move and ask hon. Dr. Laboso to second."
}