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{
    "id": 981099,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/981099/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 352,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cheruiyot",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13165,
        "legal_name": "Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot",
        "slug": "aaron-cheruiyot"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I am duly guided. I will try and be extremely brief. I support this Bill that has been done by my good friend, the Senator for Homa Bay County, Sen. M. Kajwang’, and the embodiments of that which he seeks to achieve in this particular Bill. It is very important and I have taken time to read through. It is quite a short but very nicely drafted Bill. Therefore, I have taken time the few minutes that I have been here to reflect and listen on the contributions of fellow colleagues. At the same time, I have drafted my own notes on what I think about this particular Bill. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I will go straight to the proposals that are being made by Sen. M. Kajwang’, on how to establish this particular board that is charged with the responsibilities of driving this. It is what I consider to be a very important authority; the Fisheries Marketing Authority. This is an extremely important institution. I am sure that before Sen. M. Kajwang’ sat down to determine why perhaps we need to redo the wording of the Fisheries Management and Development Act, there must have been some serious reflection that went into it. However, I have certain reservations that I would wish my good friend, Sen. M. Kajwang’, to reflect on. This continuous thinking that I see every time that we do a particular Bill, you set up a particular authority where we want the chairperson to be appointed by the President. Of course, under our Constitution, the President is a symbol of unity. They are supposed to do everything in the best interest of the country. But what has been our experience, as a legislature in the last ten years reflecting on this current Constitution? Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, if you study through the various boards that have been set up by legislation in this House, how prudent has the presidency been? It is unfortunate, because we are discussing this, having been served in this Constitution by perhaps one President and another one who was on his way out and who, therefore, may not have made many of these appointments. But the truth of the matter, because it is nothing personal to it, is that we have not been extremely wise in how we have donated some of these powers to the presidency. You remember the incident we had recently with the National Employment Authority (NEA), where the courts had to quash and people had to make a lot of noise for it to be reflected. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I do not know the wisdom in which my good friend--- I have read the memorandum, and I know that you are trying to align this particular board to the Mwongozo or guidelines that have been issued. But let me tell you something, Sen. M. Kajwang’; legislation from this House is more superior to that Mwongozo or Guide. We have the powers, and Kenyans have given us the powers to do that which is in their best interests. I always remind people that Article 1 of our Constitution is that for all the institutions that derive or have donated powers from the people of Kenya; Parliament comes first even before the Judiciary. That is how important this institution is. If we get"
}