Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 721739,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/721739/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 367,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Njomo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1784,
        "legal_name": "Jude L. Kangethe Njomo",
        "slug": "jude-l-kangethe-njomo"
    },
    "content": "Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, the same IMF during the Nyayo era was agitating and pushing so strongly to the Government of Kenya to close the National Bank of Kenya (NBK), which was the only surviving locally-owned bank. At the same time, all the international banks in the country were closing local branches. The branches upcountry were being closed. People could not access banking facilities. I thank the Nyayo Government because they never closed the NBK. It is on this front that other banks have come up and have filled the gap that was left open by the branches that were closed upcountry, which provided banking facilities to our farmers, Jua Kali artisans, matatu operators and all small-scale business people. They were helping them. That is why I support this Bill. It is targeting the people who cannot access immovable assets and they have small assets that they can use as collateral. I would like to echo what Hon. Ichung’wah said about our microfinance institutions and SACCOs because they also provide credit facilities to our populace. These organisations have been behaving as if they are not financial institutions and are not governed by the Banking Act. They have been charging interest rates at will. They have told their customers that they are not banks and, therefore, are not affected by the Banking (Amendment) Act. I would like to remind them that the Act that we passed was not only for banks, but also targeted other financial institutions. These two facilities are well defined by the Banking Act which defines a financial institution as any organisation that collects money for purposes of safe keeping or investing on behalf of the depositor. That is exactly what SACCOs and microfinance institutions do. Therefore, the likes of the Kenya Women Finance Trust and others that have been behaving as if they are above this law should be warned because the Banking (Amendment) Act covers even those institutions. They should not go beyond what the law defines. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}