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{
    "id": 974774,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/974774/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 271,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Funyula, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr.) Wilberforce Oundo",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13331,
        "legal_name": "Wilberforce Ojiambo Oundo",
        "slug": "wilberforce-ojiambo-oundo-2"
    },
    "content": "Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and Enterprise Development to the Ministry of East African Community for purposes of coordination. Consequently, the import of the amendment is to include the party or the department responsible for ease of doing business to sit on the Business Registration Services Board. That is essentially why they propose to delete reference to the CS in charge of Trade and replace it with CS in charge of business reforms and transformation. That is why there is that particular change. We received public comments, fortunately or unfortunately, from only the State Department for Trade and the Office of the Attorney-General. While the State Department for Trade requested to include the CS in charge of Trade, the Office of the AG was of the view that this is a department or a section that can be moved any time from the Ministry of East African Community and brought back to the Ministry of Trade or moved to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or to any other Ministry. That is why we were inclined to accept their comments that we retain the amendment as indicated under Clause 27, changing from Trade but retaining ‘business reforms and transformation.’ As a Committee, we will not make any further changes or propose any further amendments; we will retain it as it is. As the Speaker had mentioned, let me also take this opportunity to make a comment on the Bill so that we picture what we are talking about. We must accept that technology makes it easy to do business. It makes it more convenient to undertake business. But as we support the changes to incorporate ICT, we remain wary, especially those of us whom ICT found around, because we are not so sure how secure the electronic signatures are. Many times we read in the newspapers how the so-called hackers have hacked into bank accounts and moved millions of money. We just pray that our systems will be secure enough to avoid issues of impersonation, hacking and changing the documents. If the Documents and Survey Act is tampered with, the ramifications to doing business in the lands sector will be unimaginable. If those electronic signatures are ever forged or tampered with, I worry about the consequences. So, I hope and pray that indeed our system will be secure enough and even if it is breached, we will have mechanism to indemnify those who act in the strength of the forged or tampered-with documentation. In essence, I support. But that is my cause of worry. Secondly, Clause 15 proposes to make amendments to the National Construction Authority Act. Requiring the NCA to enforce a prescribed building code in the construction industry is to substantially extend or expand the mandate of NCA. Obviously, it will come with a huge financial implication. I sincerely hope there is sufficient budgetary allocation to enable NCA undertake the function. Secondly, mandatory inspection of all building sites at any time sounds very progressive and good, but with the vastness of this country and with so many informal constructions in the rural areas that are not within any gazetted urban areas, I can see the difficulties of achieving this objective. Probably, as we go to the Committee of the whole House, it might be important and we will have to persuade the Committee responsible to listen to us and probably only designate this mandate, at the first instance, within cities and urban areas as provided in the Cities and Urban Areas Act. I also want to go on record to correct a misconception that the Chair of the transport committee had made on the Floor, purporting to indicate that there is no building code in this country. That is off the mark. And it is unfortunate that he was not apprised enough. There is the Building By-Law of 1968 that was adopted by all the local authorities under the former Local Authorities Act. Under the Physical Planning and Land Use Act, there is donated the power to make by-laws to the various local authorities, in this sense the various county governments. I know sometimes back, when we were still under the NARC Government, there was a draft The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}