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{
    "id": 822903,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/822903/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 91,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Tinderet, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Julius Melly",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 12849,
        "legal_name": "Julius Kipbiwot Melly",
        "slug": "julius-kipbiwot-melly"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I rise to support the Petition. In all developed societies, one of the ways in which nations have developed is through education. One of the ways you can make it affordable is to bring the cost of reading materials down. In Kenya, the reason the Government went on to introduce the textbook policy was to reduce the cost of learning materials, especially textbooks in schools. When we zero-rate books, journals and magazines, it is going to assist our society. I want to give a case. In most primary and secondary schools, in the last two years, the Government used to pay around Kshs600 to buy a textbook. With the Government’s textbook policy, the cost of a textbook is coming down to less than Kshs200 or Kshs250. If we zero-rate textbooks, you will realise that institutions like private schools, colleges, universities and all other institutions of learning will be able to access these reading materials very well. Two, even the libraries across the country lack books. There are national libraries that lack books and it is because the cost of textbooks is vey high. If we zero-rate textbooks, we will be able ensure that most schools, institutions and libraries are well stocked. Lastly, this VAT on books has impacted on the cost of education to an extent that it has made education expensive. By zero-rating it, the cost will come down and it will be affordable in most families. I support. Thank you."
}