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{
"id": 904436,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/904436/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Sakaja",
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"speaker": {
"id": 13131,
"legal_name": "Johnson Arthur Sakaja",
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"content": "in your vernacular, you will be frowned upon because they know what it means and how it feels to those who may be somewhere else. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we must relook at the issue of vernacular in the media. Our Constitution recognizes only two national languages; English and Kiswahili, and there is a reason for it. When you come out of your vehicle after listening to Wimwaro FM or whichever station you listen to in Tharaka Nithi, do you come out feeling more of a Kenyan or more of a Meru? We are proud of our cultural heritage, but we are at a point where we must make very deliberate moves to unite our people. When Sen. (Dr.) Musuruve comes out of her car after listening to Mulembe FM and talking in Luhya with her Personal Assistant (PA), driver and aide, does she walk into the Senate feeling more Kenyan or more Luhya? Former President Moi once said that multiparty politics will divide us. I believe in multiparty democracy, but we have changed parties into ethnic Balkans. Today, you can tell me what the Kikuyu, Luo, Kamba and Luhya parties are. That speaks volumes about the kind of country that we are trying to create. Our counties have become ethnic Balkans. Today, you cannot get a job in Bungoma County if you are not a Luhya, particularly a Bukusu. Tomorrow, you will not get a job in Nyeri County if you are from Kiambu, leave alone not being a Kikuyu. Did we create devolution to divide us further or to bring us closer as a country? Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, as the Chairpersons of the Committee on Labour and Social Welfare, I am working very hard to set up a meeting with the Council of Public Service Boards on the 5th of June to create a county public service where we can do inter- county transfers. What happens to a young man called Wafula born in Eldoret, whose name does not sound like Eldoret, which is the only place that he knows, yet he is told to go get a job in Trans-Nzoia or Kakamega Counties, where nobody knows him? Sen. Pareno, as you establish this institution, we need to have the proper ethos in the leadership and spirit to not just create jobs for the boys, but a Commission that will get to the root causes and make us feel Kenyan again. As Sen. Halake has said eloquently, this must cascade to the counties. In every constituency, we put up peace committees that have never been funded since 2007. We have wazee, the churches, religious leaders and Imams who sit together but and cannot even afford to take a soda. Those peace committees must be funded. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, as l conclude, there is no greater cause for us today, as a country, than the building of bridges and uniting our people. l urge the President, His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta; my good friend ― baba, ‖ the former Rt. (Hon.) Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, and all our leaders, that the truest legacy that we can leave this country for generations to come is a country where, no matter where you come from, you will one day feel proud to be a Kenyan. That way, tomorrow, an El Molo or Njemps can become President because of the kind of society we would have created, founded on love, peace and unity. Congratulations Sen. Pareno. We support this Bill to the end and will help you get it passed. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}