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{
    "id": 729584,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/729584/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 125,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Maanzo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2197,
        "legal_name": "Daniel Kitonga Maanzo",
        "slug": "daniel-kitonga-maanzo"
    },
    "content": "I support the law. It must coincide with the Constitution. This is part of what was being amended. Article 43(1) of the Constitution provides for the right of every person to the highest attainable standard of health, including reproductive health care. There are also the rights to basic education and health in the country. That is what the law is trying to ensure. I want to congratulate Hon. Grace Chemutai Kiptui for having come up with the amendments to make basic education better. This will provide free and compulsory basic education to every child. What has been happening in private institutions is that in normal nursery schools or basic education, fees are levied yet when you move to primary school, there are none. As a country, we need to avoid a situation where any child, whether they are going through basic education or primary education, is not sent away for any levies of whatever nature. In fact, while discussing that particular matter recently with the Cabinet Secretary for Education, Science and Technology, Mr. Matiang’i, he said that there are no fees which should be levied at all and that no single child should be sent away from school. He also said that if there is a receipt of such a nature, it should be brought to his knowledge and he will take the necessary action against that particular head of an institution or such an institution. When there is compulsory basic education in the country, children do not pay school fees for basic education. We should have a structure and a system where even children going to nursery, no matter how cheap it is, have the right facilities, good healthcare, do not study in unhealthy places and do not get charged any fees. A child in basic education or nursery school should not be sent away for fees yet it is happening almost everywhere in the country. We should synchronise this, so that private and Government institutions do not charge levies on this. As I conclude, even when this Basic Education (Amendment) Bill is implemented by the counties, especially infrastructure-wise, the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) chips in, in cases where a certain institution did not budget for that during that year. This will ensure that those children do not study in buildings likely to collapse and that the buildings are good, well-coloured and have images and the children can enjoy studying from a very basic age. Otherwise, what has been the practice in the country is seeing very young children being sent away for school fees while in the country it is a general policy that primary education is free, compulsory and there should be no levies whatsoever. In fact, most schools access money from the NG-CDF for infrastructure. They get money from the Government for watchmen and other basic costs. Therefore, no parents should pay any coin, especially in the rural areas or everywhere in the country for primary education. This law is seeking the same for basic education. Therefore, it should be included in the annual estimates, every time we make the Budget, once this law comes into force, that all basic education institutions or nurseries are funded by the Government."
}