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{
    "id": 922322,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/922322/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 334,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Dr.) Milgo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13174,
        "legal_name": "Milgo Alice Chepkorir",
        "slug": "milgo-alice-chepkorir"
    },
    "content": "no maize in this country and wants us to import it. The CS should be summoned to this House to tell us what is affecting his Ministry, because it seems that he wants to spend more money on importing maize. As I speak, the farmers can no longer rely on maize. Maize has always been their source of food and financial stability. It has helped them take their children to school and buy basic necessities, but they cannot do that anymore. The farmers who have produced maize through thick and thin have been forced to supply a quarter of their produce to the NCPB. In fact, they are actually being told that they are not the actual producers of their maize. The CS should tell Kenyans if he is incapable of handling that docket. If that is the case, he should resign and allow somebody else to take over. We have been challenging our unemployed youth to consider maize farming as a business. However, the youths who borrowed money to grow maize cannot return the same funds to the financing institutions. I am sure these are the youth who shall be blacklisted by the Credit Reference Bureau (CRB). We have a lot of issues about maize, which is a challenge that Members of various Committees have been going round to try to address. I am sure that after a short while another taskforce will be formed to go round to find out what is happening. It is only recently that we talked about the fall armyworms that will affect farmers. The Cabinet Secretary took a long time to respond to the farmers and assist them to get insecticides or provide agriculture extension officers to train them on how to use the necessary chemicals, to ensure maize is protected against the fall armyworms. I challenge Sen. (Prof.) Kamar to look into the gaps and come up with a Bill. I know that we will continue spending money and going round talking about maize day in, day out, and nothing will happen. Somebody said that they will import maize from Mexico. The reason we have many cases of cancer in this country could be as a result of importation of maize or foodstuffs that are Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). This is because we are not sure about them. There is a time the Government imported yellow maize. Yellow maize is supposed to be used as a feed for cows. However, we import anything because we are helpless. It is unfortunate that our farmers have a lot of maize, and soon they will harvest more, yet the Government plans to waste money on importation. Mr. Temporary Speaker, with those few comments, I support this Statement and hope that it will be addressed as a matter of urgency."
}