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{
    "id": 813770,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/813770/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 57,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Dr.) Kabaka",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13206,
        "legal_name": "Boniface Mutinda Kabaka",
        "slug": "boniface-mutinda-kabaka-2"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir for giving me this opportunity. I stand to support the Petition by Sen. Seneta. I have realised that in her prayers, among others in the Petition, she is asking for enforcement or recognition by way of legislation to cater for that discrimination. I need to pinpoint that area of discrimination of minorities and marginalised communities is well captured in Article 56 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 on specific application of rights. Article 56 of the Constitution is very categorical on what the State ought to do. It says:- The State shall put in place affirmative action programmes designed to ensure that minorities and marginalised groups— (a) Participate and are represented in governance and other spheres of life; (b) Are provided special opportunities in educational and economic fields; (c) Are provided special opportunities for access to employment; (d) Develop their cultural values, languages and practices; and (e) Have reasonable access to water, health services and infrastructure. The Constitution is sacrosanct and supreme. Therefore, whatever law designed by Sen. Seneta or the relevant body ought to capture what is enshrined in the Constitution. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I need to state that the same problem with Sen. Seneta in Kajiado County is not only inimical there, but in areas like Machakos County and its surroundings. In Machakos, for example, we have over over 100 companies. Mavoko Town Council being a cosmopolitan town has so many of those companies; some local and others multinational, but yet Machakos youth are not employed. Always I have a heap of files of young people; both men and women, asking me to intervene for them to get some opportunities from those companies. I face similar challenges like Sen. Seneta. Therefore, such legislation in this Petition is quite handy. Masinga Dam Company is shared by Embu and Machakos counties. We have Kenya Electricity Generating Company Limited (KenGen), Kenya Power (KP). I have sat many times with the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and I ask them why is it that only lower cadres or positions like watchmen and sweepers are given to Kambas from this area. However, high cadre positions like the CEOs and others, are not given to Kambas yet there many learned Kambas, including myself. Why are we not given the opportunity to serve in those positions? We do not know when these jobs are advertised. We are given a raw deal. A legislation of this nature or magnitude will help. Last but not least, Sen. Seneta, in her Petition, touched on a very sensitive issue of CSR. This issue is very complex even to bigger institutions of high learning. I want to submit that social responsibility is not mandatory of any corporate, it is just discretional. There are two schools of thought about it. One believes as long as a company is paying taxes to the national Government, that is it. It has no business in social responsibility. 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."
}