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{
    "id": 838834,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/838834/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 188,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kwanza, FORD-K",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Ferdinand Wanyonyi",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2065,
        "legal_name": "Ferdinard Kevin Wanyonyi",
        "slug": "ferdinard-kevin-wanyonyi"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. There is a saying that a healthy nation is a wealthy nation. I say that because this Bill is addressing most of the issues that are actually affecting our nation. When I was elected in 2013, I had to do a lot of construction in my constituency and completed some of the health centres that were not completed by my predecessor. I agree with one of the Members who said that county governments have not taken up this issue seriously or they are not funded well enough. We had cases where some of the facilities that were put up by us are not even furnished. Drugs and personnel are not there. Therefore, my only conclusion is that this was not the right time for us to devolve healthcare to county governments. From what I have heard, most Members are saying the same. When you go anywhere, you will find facilities are available, but they are abandoned. You will find our patients moving miles and miles and kilometres to look for healthcare. In my case, I want to declare here that every day, I bury more than six people in my constituency and this is because of the poor health services that were prematurely devolved to county governments. I have no regrets to make that statement because it is true. If you go to the vote, 90 per cent of Members here will tell you that healthcare was prematurely devolved to county governments. The other thing which the Chairlady stated when seconding, and I quite agree with her, is that public health is supposed to be under the Ministry of Health. For some reason, a few months ago, it was moved to the internal security docket. I am yet to know the reason because there is a lot of importation which was done by the Ministry of Health. At points of entry, public health officers are supposed to inspect all the imports that come into this country. I do not know why this was moved and I am yet to be told why it was moved to the internal security docket. It is misplaced. Thirdly, I also agree that most of the pharmaceutical practitioners should be the ones to dispense drugs. We have quacks out there. I think we should have some punitive measures to curtail this. Maybe that is the cause of many deaths that I see. The agro vets are all over the place and even my grandmother can have an agro vet out there to sell drugs which at the end of the day, are consumed by human beings. No wonder I have so many deaths in my constituency. I do not know why. We see people moving from one place and others going to India. What do we get? We get people brought back in coffins. Something should be done about this. Therefore, I suggest that the Departmental Committee on Health should enforce the regulations and ensure there are strict inspections on chemists and agro vets. We should merge the departments of veterinary and health and have inspectors jointly going round to do spot check and ensure that the shops where pharmaceutical products are sold, either for animals or for humans, are safe. 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."
}