Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 806929,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/806929/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 139,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Ms.) Sara Korere (",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13134,
        "legal_name": "Sara Paulata Korere",
        "slug": "sara-paulata-korere"
    },
    "content": "Laikipia North, JP): Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I want to add my voice to this debate and congratulate the Mover of the Motion, Hon. Vincent Kemosi. A very wise woman once said that “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”. In this case, for us to retain our children in school and make sure that they have maximum concentration, we have to take care of their stomachs. As the case is now, it is very important that Kenyans rise to the spirit of the Constitution of equity and equality. As it is now, we are aware that there is a school feeding programme going on in some schools, but that is discriminatory. In some constituencies, for example, Laikipia North, where I come from, this issue has placed me at crossroads. Parents cannot understand why some schools are benefiting from the feeding programme while others, in the same neighbourhood, do not benefit. As the Member who just spoke before me said, most of us seated in this House take our children to private schools. We know very well that they take tea and some snacks at 10.00 a.m., a meal at lunch time and snacks at 4.00 p.m. The children must be taken care of so that they can concentrate in class. There is absolutely no reason why some children should be discriminated against simply because their parents cannot afford to pack some snacks for them or their parents cannot afford to take them to private schools where they can have lunch. This Motion should have been passed like yesterday. I will also ask this House that as we concentrate on pushing this Motion to reality, and as we concentrate on makings sure that Kenyan children are treated as children of an equal God, we should not try to bring our personal interests into it like suggesting that the money, if available, should go to the woman representative or the NG-CDF. As it is now, we have enough work of legislating in this House. We have enough work of concentrating with the resources that we already have through the NG- CDF. There are other Government departments like the State Department on Special Programmes which can handle this issue. We know we have some of our parents who are farmers and cannot feed their children, so that we can avoid instances like that of the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB), which has become another cash cow for some cartels in this country. This august House should push for this very important Motion because the children of Kenya need some very special attention. The children of Kenya should be fed. It does not make sense to ask a student who goes to school on an empty stomach to concentrate. At the end of the year, all children across the country sit for the same exam, irrespective of whether they went to Alliance High School or to Doldol Secondary School or some school in West Pokot. It is only reasonable that, at this juncture, we make sure that the school feeding programme is rolled out across the country, especially for nursery school children. I congratulate the Governor of Nyandarua and other governors who are providing milk to school children. We need to take care of the little children in nursery and primary school so that, at least, they stop worrying about what they will eat or that they slept hungry and concentrate for the eight hours that they are in school. I beg to support. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}