Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 730242,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/730242/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 238,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Assembly and republished or are being sat on. We do not even know because they do not even get to the Order Paper. We have over 30 laws that are pending before the National Assembly. We have consistently behaved like the big brother and we always give priority to the Bills that come from the National Assembly but we have had to struggle. I remember being one of the beneficiaries whose Bill has been assented to by the President. It took almost two years of lobbing in the National Assembly to get that on the Order Paper. I do not think we have been treated right in this legislative process and out of these 136 laws, I can assure you that ours are not as many; not because we are not working but because we have been frustrated along the process and trampled upon by the National Assembly. I hope that in the Twelfth Parliament, we will get people who will behave better so that whenever you have a responsibility, whether you are sitting in the National Assembly, the Senate, the Speakers seat or any public service position, you know that you are holding it in trust for the Kenyan public and for the people that delegated that power from Article 1 and 2 of the Constitution. The other regret that I thought the President would personally talk to which we as Parliament have failed to do, is the enactment of the laws that are meant to implement the ‘not more than two thirds gender rule’. I think it is one thing that we have failed as Parliament and it is regrettable that we will go to the Twelfth Parliament having not found a mechanism and a legal framework to ensure that it has been done. Madam Temporary Speaker, during this public address, I laud our Members of the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) for behaving very well this time just like they should have done the other time. There were no whistles and I think Sen. M. Kajwang has already confirmed that he did not carry one. However, I think going forward, we will be able to see and listen to what the President has to say. In any case, we always have a chance to come and debate and critique and criticize what has been said by the President. Generally, I think the President alluded to very important issues such as the war against drugs. Madam Temporary Speaker, the drug war is another war that the President touched. The cooperation of the national Government even with the international enforcers against drug trafficking is necessary. We must be able to crack down on the barons and not just the peddlers because that is where the problem is. When there is no source we will have no peddlers. Drugs have destroyed families, homes and societies. Therefore, we must speak very strongly and laud the President for making that an agenda of his Government and making sure that he leads from the front. On the issue of connectivity, I want to correct Sen. M. Kajwang. The President never said that each headquarter is connected to fiber optic. In fact, if you read the Speech very well it says clearly that it was only 50 per cent connectivity of the headquarters. Therefore, it is still work in progress. So, we cannot mislead the House that he said the coverage is 100 per cent. It is work in progress and that is commendable. Madam Temporary Speaker, on the issue of the report of State of National Security, the President took up leadership when we were in a very delicate and hard situation in terms of across border fights that were spilling over to this country. There was the issue of terrorism with Al-Shabaab and Al-Qaeda all over the world. The country has done very well generally in ensuring that we have reduced these terrorist The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate"
}