GET /api/v0.1/hansard/entries/950502/?format=api
HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 950502,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/950502/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 99,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cheruiyot",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13165,
        "legal_name": "Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot",
        "slug": "aaron-cheruiyot"
    },
    "content": "even impromptu visits just to ensure that the children living there sleep in a clean environment, go to school and get meals as is expected of young people. If you cannot provide for them, then do not set up a children’s home. This law provides for county governments to be able to set up children’s homes of their own. For example, Kericho County, the county I represent in this House, is able to set up a Kericho County Children’s Home. That way, we will not have racketeers who will round up children, put them in a particular place, pretending and masquerading as if they are looking after their needs, but all they are doing is attracting investments in the name of donations. This element of supervision is extremely critical. This is one of the reasons why I hold this Bill as a brilliant piece of legislation. It is because it will ensure that only those children’s homes that meet the standards which are listed here are approved and monitored from time to time to ensure that these children lead a decent life. Clause 4 is about licensing which is another important issue. I do not have the statistics, but maybe as the Committee tables its report, it should be able to tell us how many children’s homes are owned by locals or Kenyans. We understand the way the world is. I cannot think of any particular part of the globe where you cannot find destitute children to take care of. Growing up as an African child, you imagine that the rest of the world is so advanced and civilized that they do not need these kind of services. As you grow up and as the world continues to become a one simple global village, you appreciate that these challenges that are in Kenya are virtually even in the first world countries. Mr. Speaker, Sir, for people to come and set up children’s homes here, they need to give justification. For one to leave their home country in the United States of America (USA) and come and set up a children’s home in Kenya, they must provide good reason and justification. That way, we will not end up with the case as was with that gentleman whose name I cannot recall, but as I speak, he is serving his term in jail because he used to pretend to run a children’s home in Bomet County. It was a place to organise how to traffic children. They would move these children from Kenya all the way to the Democratic Republic of Congo and different parts of the globe. I want to charge Sen. (Dr.) Zani and the Committee that will consider the amendments to make the regulations for licensing to be a bit more stringent than is being proposed here. It should not be as easy as getting a permit or license to operate a business. We are talking about the lives of young people. Therefore, it will be important that before one is granted a license to start a children home, that all kinds of checks are done on him. We need to establish whether that individual is of sound mind and of good moral standing. The world continues to face very difficult and different forms of challenges. Sometimes even the well-meaning or well-looking people end up being the most hurting and end up doing not very nice things to these children. The element of licensing is important. It will be good to propose that the people that sit in the licensing approving board in the various counties, be men and women of integrity. Let them be people who will not be easily bribed with Kshs5,000 or Kshs10,000 as is the case with our county. I do not want to be obsessed with figures. If there is a lesson that we have learnt as a nation is that no amount is too high for many of these people who want to do some of these 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."
}