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"id": 981508,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/981508/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Tharaka, DP",
"speaker_title": "Hon. George Gitonga",
"speaker": {
"id": 13491,
"legal_name": "George Gitonga Murugara",
"slug": "george-gitonga-murugara"
},
"content": "insects, which is that the old ones that are dying are not just dying. It is their lifespan that is coming to an end. The net effect is that they are laying eggs which are going to hatch into some young creatures called nymphs. The nymphs have a big problem because when they start consuming anything, they consume five times more than the adult ones. As I speak, my Tharaka Constituency has been under attack for the last one month. I must single out a sub-county known as Tharaka North, which the locusts have made their bedroom. The two locations of that sub- county, namely, Kathangachini and Maragua, were under severe attack. The locusts have died, but before their death, they lay eggs. The Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture visited the place yesterday. In photographs, you could see him catching the nymphs, which means that we are now more endangered than we were before. This is the reason why we need urgent Government interventions and measures that would bring this menace to an end. Finally, after the menace is eradicated, we stand to suffer hunger because crops and pasture have been destroyed and what we are left with is possibly nothing to eat and nothing to graze on. So, we need to hear from the Government what compensation measures are being put in place to ensure that the menace does not inflict too much loss and damage on us. Let me speak about the effects of locusts. First and foremost, we have excessive crop damage. In fact, it is followed by excessive extermination of pastures. What is left behind is similar to a desert. It means life is going to be extremely hard. Hardships, lack of food, lack of pastures and drought are imminent. What do we ask the Government to do? I think the level of preparedness as far as the locusts are concerned, to say the least, was wanting. The Government was not well prepared or ready in spite of the fact that we were warned in November that the locusts had been spotted in Ethiopia and Somalia. So, in future, the Ministry of Agriculture and the relevant Government agencies must put in place measures, so that when locusts are spotted in the neighbouring countries, our country is ready for the attack and therefore, able to thwart that attack. When the locusts landed in our country and we informed the Ministry straightaway, there was some spirited effort to spray the locusts, but eventually we were told the chemicals were exhausted. Therefore, we had to wait for orders from Japan. As we waited for orders from Japan, the locusts were doing their job, which is to consume everything that is on their way. Eventually, the chemicals are here and we are told that the locusts are too old to be sprayed. I would call upon the Government to ensure that all the areas where the nymphs are spotted immediate action is taken. The Cabinet Secretary has assured us that the whole of the National Youth Service (NYS) will be mobilised and deployed to the areas where the nymphs are found. The NYS will be doing aerial, mechanical and manual spraying. I would also add that the citizens, who are quite used to spraying mechanisms - because the crops we grow, especially in Tharaka, are sprayed - are taught on measures to spray. They should be given hand pumps and the chemicals free of charge, so that whenever the small creatures are detected, we can have them eradicated. As I move this Motion, it is my humble prayer that we should not politicise this calamity facing our country. I heard the Ministry mention that among other things, they have to support the BBI and do all these things. The BBI is for politicians and not civil servants. Let us deal with this calamity. It does not matter which side of the political divide we are in. We are all Kenyans. We are all taxpayers. May we get adequate compensation when the time comes, especially for my Tharaka Constituency, which is one of the most affected areas by this calamity? I, therefore, wish to move and belief it will be done as we have prayed. Thank you very much. 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."
}