{"id":960405,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/960405/?format=json","text_counter":216,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Sen. Sakaja","speaker_title":"","speaker":{"id":13131,"legal_name":"Johnson Arthur Sakaja","slug":"johnson-arthur-sakaja"},"content":"Secondly, are we paying our officers enough? If an officer cannot afford a house, stays in a shared accommodation together with another officer or in one room with his wife and children, what kind of dignity are we talking about? We have a problem with our wage bill, but security is an essential service in this country. We cannot talk about salaries of Members of Parliament (MPs), yet the salaries of police officers – who guard us and this country – are not taken into account. We must look at the welfare of these police officers. I am glad that, indeed, they have an insurance program within the military and the police where today, an officer or his family member who has a health problem are being treated very well. It has improved, but it can be better. Madam Temporary Speaker, all of these things I am talking about contribute to the psychological and mental state of our police officers and they must be taken seriously. A police officer should be somebody who is very happy. A child who is lost or somebody who needs help or direction will first go a police officer, who should be happy to assist. He should be able to give you directions or even help you out if you have a problem. However today, the converse is true. 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."}