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{
    "id": 786238,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/786238/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 119,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Mwaura",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13129,
        "legal_name": "Isaac Maigua Mwaura",
        "slug": "isaac-mwaura"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I rise to support the Motion on unity of purpose between His Excellency the President, Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta and the former Prime Minister, Rt. hon. Raila Odinga. I can authoritatively comment about these two great gentlemen because I served as a Member of the National Assembly, courtesy of Rt. hon. Raila Odinga who nominated me. Today, I am serving as hon. Senator because of his Excellency the President, Hon. Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta who nominated me. On a light note, our people out there, are saying Uhuru Tibim and Raila Tialala just to show the kind of spirit that is engulfing the country. Today morning on InooroFM, I was very glad to hear people from Homa Bay County saying they cannot wait to see President Uhuru and Rt. hon. Raila Odinga touring their county to unite them and speak to them. Indeed, we are very excited to hear there is a programme by the two gentlemen to tour the country and unite it. It reminds me of the time when Raila Odinga and his Excellency Mwai Kibaki went to Nyeri in 2002. The Rt. hon. Raila Odinga was referred to as Njamba; meaning a hero in Kikuyu language. Mr. Speaker, Sir, let us agree that this country was deeply divided. Those of us who were foot soldiers of the political divide that we find ourselves in, could not even tolerate one another on television. It looked like we were going to war; we were not reasoning. Any time you said anything, somebody would jump on you. Reason had taken a back seat because of the deep divisions and suspicions. Unity must have purpose because if we just unite for the sake of it, then people may lose direction. In fact, I was very happy to see the National Super Alliance (NASA) other co-principals saying that they too would like to meet his Excellency the President, Hon. Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta. My response to them is: “Welcome, we all need everybody on board in this process of uniting Kenya.” We must respect the fact that the former Prime Minister, Rt. hon. Raila Odinga provided leadership by showing the way that the whole country has followed. We must ask ourselves this question: For how long are we going to play our politics based on ethnic mobilisation? If we do so, it means that if we vote for a certain candidate, we are voting for their tribe and, therefore, against another tribe. This is very sad. Investors say this country is good and has a future. However, they cannot be sitting back to watch every five years as we grapple with the outcome of elections. If we have to move forward, let us accept that the structure of the Executive does not allow for full inclusion of the face of Kenya. That is the truth. Going forward, for purposes of unity, we may need to expand the structure of the Executive to create the position of the Chief Cabinet Secretary and two deputies so that competing coalitions can have an opportunity to serve in the Government and present their manifesto to Kenyans. If we do not stand together as a country and slay the dragon of corruption, it does not matter who captures the State through democratic means because Kenyans will not get their rightful share and birth right. For sure, we need to address tribalism and corruption in this country. Tribalism has robbed us of our collective sense of purpose while corruption has stolen our present and our future. It is incumbent upon us, as 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."
}