Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 77581,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/77581/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 314,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Ms. Karua",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 166,
        "legal_name": "Martha Wangari Karua",
        "slug": "martha-karua"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Committee’s Report with a few reservations which I will mention. I did ask three questions in this Parliament; one directed to the Attorney-General, one to the Minister in charge of internal security and another to the Minister for Cooperative Development and Marketing. All the questions were relating to issues surrounding Harambee SACCO. It was a Question to the Attorney-General and the police that caused this matter to be referred to the Committee. I must say that the Question that I had asked the Minister initially was resolved by the Minister agreeing to see the complainants in his office, listening to them and promising that the regulator who was being put in place at that time would be able to sort out the problems of the SACCO. I want to say, therefore, from the outset that the gentlemen who gave me the material from which I asked the Question are not anonymous people. They are people who were even able to go and sit in the Minister’s office. They are members of the SACCO who at one time or another, have been barred from participating in the general meetings of the SACCO by the current management who are unhappy with their raising issues. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I must say that the Minister was helpful but we are still waiting for the regulator to sort out the problems of this SACCO. The Committee has also been helpful but there is the limitation that a Parliamentary Committee cannot play the role of the investigators of crime. That is the role of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) or the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission (KACC). This matter brings to fore the limitations of Parliamentary Committees. During the same time that the Speaker referred this matter to the Committee, the Attorney-General did indicate that he had directed the KACC to investigate the matter and call for a forensic audit. That ought to have settled the matter but because of the letter of the anonymous Mr. Lagat, the Speaker referred the matter to the Committee. May I say from the outset that the questions that I had raised in this Parliament were never about the Minister for Co-operative Development and Marketing. Those who asked me to raise the questions had no issue with the Minister. Therefore, it is somewhat unfortunate that the focus of the Report has been allegations that have been unsubstantiated which were"
}