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{
    "id": 907641,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/907641/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 442,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Mwaura",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13129,
        "legal_name": "Isaac Maigua Mwaura",
        "slug": "isaac-mwaura"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I rise to support this very important Bill. I highly congratulate Sen. Kasanga, who is an architect by training. I see in her, through this Bill, an embodiment of a struggle and commitment to a course to ensure that a person makes a difference when they have an opportunity to do so. I believe that when she was elected to this office to represent women through her party, she had this as one of her agenda. It is important that it has seen the light of day. I am saying this because there is always a reason why we come to Parliament. We do not come to Parliament for the sake of usurping hallowed positions in society, but rather to advance the course of the people that we represent and for the sake of humanity. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this Bill is timely because it is trying to make the Government more responsive to issues of persons who have mental health conditions. It is a journey that has been travelled, and is full of a lot of contestations. As we speak currently, there is a United Nations (UN) Convention on the rights of PWDs. We are having the conference of State Parties in New York, the 12th since we adapted this convention in 2006. Usually, we have a lot of robust discussions around issues to do with mental health and intellectual disability, as we call it sometimes. Recently, we have come up with a category of persons who have a mental health condition which we now call ‘psycho-social disability.’ These are people who are users and survivors of psychiatry. They are individuals who require psychiatric intervention in order for them to attain their full potential on a day-to-day basis. These include persons such as those who have bipolar, schizophrenia and other conditions. One of the things that I noted when I was having a discussion with Dr. Frank Njenga recently, who is a senior psychiatrist in this country, is that mother nature is kind. This is because some of the people who have these conditions are extremely gifted. It has been scientifically proven that people who are bipolar are extremely intelligent. It is something that I used to suspect before, but I am glad to say that it has been proven scientifically. They are intelligent, creative and happen to be some of the best renowned people. The problem is the fact that people do not identify themselves positively with their mental health condition because of the stigma and discrimination. I have had individuals who have told me that they are bipolar but they cannot pronounce it, because in this country, when you are seen not to be in the right mental state, you are thought to be marred and, therefore, not well trusted by the society. However, it is good to positively identify yourself because it begins with self acceptance and declaration. If a person is a pioneer of something – I have travelled that road many times – you get the flack on behalf of others. That is what happens to people who stand up for the courses of others. Eventually, we normalize these conversations. It is like the way Robert Frost says about the road not taken; it is difficult because you have to be the one creating the pave way, but it makes things easier for everybody going forward. It becomes something that people are more able to own up to, and it becomes – without provoking my sister, Sen. Halake – sexy to identify yourself with the course. It is true that we are increasingly an individual contractual society, where people are living on their own. If we were to challenge the Senators who are here to say whether 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."
}