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{
"id": 1563552,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563552/?format=api",
"text_counter": 287,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wakili Sigei",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Sen. Hamida, you will definitely get a copy of the HANSARD and what I would urge you to do is to interest them, so that they do so, and introduce the amendments. However, in the event they do not do so, you can as well introduce them as a Member. Remember, you still have an opportunity at the Committee of the Whole stage. Proceed, Sen. Eddy."
},
{
"id": 1563553,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563553/?format=api",
"text_counter": 288,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Oketch Gicheru",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to share some thoughts on this Bill. Right from the start, this Bill is well-motivated because we have seen the place of sports academies around the globe that certainly, as a country, we need to start emulating. There is no doubt that sports has become one of the biggest employers, both directly and indirectly. It is one of the biggest employers because today we have got sports journalism. Today we have got economies that are thriving because of sports. We have got the creative economy, where artistic elements like jerseys that people use in sports or any other materials that are attached to different clubs are tied to economic gains. If you think about the entertainment industry today, you will find that it thrives on the basis of sports. I can argue that probably what Europe and specifically Britain exports the most into the continent of Africa is sports. If you look at the English Premier League as well as The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1563554,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563554/?format=api",
"text_counter": 289,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Oketch Gicheru",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "other leagues like the Champions League or the Spanish La Liga League on the football front alone, you will find that the related economies that come with this sport as an industry, is such a big opportunity for employing young people. So, the intent of the Bill, in terms of just creating opportunity for economic wellness for young people in this country is indeed one that warms my heart. I know that the authors of the Bill have also seen the Bill from an angle of being able to deal with a myriad of issues that comprise social problems that we face with our young people. Things like drug abuse and other forms of idleness lead our young people to things like crime in their neighborhoods. This is indeed a very warmly welcomed vision cast upon this Bill. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sire, for us to think that academies can be run by counties, it would be a big challenge; it is an outstretch. I wish that the movers of this Bill were in these conversations because sometimes it is very difficult to go back to the HANSARD and listen to what Members have said about this Bill. If you want to start thinking about sports academies in the country, the first thing you must ask yourself is, who do we want to compete with? Do you want to compete with ourselves who do not have sports academies or countries that have made strides in terms of having properly run sports academies? Sports in itself is such a big area, but also a very small area in terms of opportunity that you can get for young people. Think about the clubs that are playing the Premier League, there are only 20. If you think about the clubs that are playing La Liga, there are only 20. If you think about any top clubs, I think about in the world that are playing any leagues in those respective continental programmes of sports, they are so small that it is very difficult for young people to make it and be able to play in those major clubs. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, our first understanding about such a Bill must be understanding how the concept of academies are run within the excellences of sports in those particular regions that have made sports such a big economy. I think this is a critical part of structuring the Bill, so that when you talk about sports academies then the structure of ownership must be right from onset. Which is why the first place I would want to have a serious amendment on is in the structure of ownership of these clubs. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, what is proposed here is that counties will seek to establish these sports academies. After that Clause 36C then it establishes something called the committee, which is run by regulation from the national Government and the appointments made by the respective counties' sports committees to run these clubs. This is like building a house, starting from the wall going up instead of starting from the foundation. I think that the authors of this Bill are admiring the successful sports academies in Europe and America, which are doing very well. The sporting programmes, schemes and youth programmes that are structured within what is called academies are actually attached to successful professional clubs in these different countries. So, the first element of a great sporting academy is a successful club. That means that the stopgap we must start with is to make sure that our clubs, for whichever sport we have, are being run properly. You and I know that the clubs that we have in the country, whether it is for soccer or for netball for women, or for volleyball The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1563555,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563555/?format=api",
"text_counter": 290,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Oketch Gicheru",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "where Senator Hamida thrives cannot be run by counties. Those clubs must be run in a semi-autonomous way that appreciates the doctrines of corporate structure that allows them to thrive as academies. I wish that the authors of this Bill could sit down with Sen. Sifuna who had authored a Bill also, which we discussed here a few weeks ago. His Bill sought to make sure that counties can seclude about one per cent of their budgets and then invest it into a sports fund that enables the elements of clubs to thrive in our communities. That way we allow for an ownership structure that makes the clubs in our communities very well run, registered and think about management that can make them be competitive at a global stage. The idea here is to build talent not for talents sake and just for dealing with problems of social nature in our communities, but build talents that can compete at a global stage. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, how does this look like in Europe? This is not just the idea of having the knowledge of the game that then you want the county to invest in in terms of putting on an academy. It is about being able to have the technical know-how of being able to make a corporate or, if I may, a commercial case for that game to be able to thrive both at our national stage and internationally. For instance, think about it. If you want to give counties the burden of thinking through the schedule of classes for an academic curriculum, you start facing a big problem in terms of even just scheduling those classes, where a young person who needs to go through a sporting academy might also be required to go through a formal schooling system. That will be a problem if the ownership structure is within counties. Think about management bookings. When people in community organizations are playing in the different leagues that we have within and without our borders the idea of just even settling up on those bookings cannot be done by counties. If you think about just tracking attendance of students within an academy and balancing it out, it cannot be done by county committees. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, Sen. Osotsi had talked about the idea of financing. How do you ensure that you have got a sustainable financing platform for which you run these academies? You cannot have a sustainable financing platform if you are going to depend on county governments to dig deep into the small amount of money that we send them to fully finance this curriculum. What you are going to have to face immediately in ownership structure is that you will have to start expecting that students do some form of payment to these academies. That form of payment is a progress that counties will find themselves battling because a county is a political structure where the payment that you start requiring for students to pay for this will become a problem. We have seen it even in programmes such as even feeding programmes in Nairobi City County where the portion that students need to pay starts becoming a problem. When it is owned in a private setting, but then enabled by a county by facilitating proper running of clubs then we will have some form of subsidies that then go into these private academies that are striving in counties because their clubs are being run properly. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1563556,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563556/?format=api",
"text_counter": 291,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Oketch Gicheru",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "I am talking about this ownership structure that must be predicated upon proper running of our clubs, proper running of Gor Mahia, Shabana FC, Police FC and even the volleyball that we are seeing in the country run by amazing women. If you think about sports the counties will be confronted by either developing or renting proper facilities for these sports. The recurring budget in that will be so humongous that the counties will not even be able to manage. Now, the Bill here proposes a management structure that is ordinary. Basically get somebody with a degree that then can run and manage this club just like you are running any other county entity that is established under PFM Act Section 184. If we did that how can you guarantee quality and valuable time for the athletes that you want to invest in to compete at a global stage? It will be very difficult. Mr. Temporary Speaker, the overall comment that I am making here for the owners of this Bill - and I am glad that Sen. Chimera just walked in - is that this Bill must be reviewed within starting from the ownership structure that allows the clubs to put a scheme that allows young people to be able to engage in sports. Why this is very important for us? We have seen it thriving in other places is because by clubs owning the structure of academies, number one, they will be very clear in terms of their mission and vision. The Bill says that there will be a requirement for every single county government to establish at least one sports academy. How do you vision and mission that? For instance, in Migori County, where I come from, we have got very many young women who are very good at netball. We have many good young men who are very good at volleyball or even soccer. How do you vision a county being able to put up a soccer structure at the expense of a netball structure? You can allow netball to be a club by itself and have it well run, but supported by counties in terms of resources given in subsidized form. With that, you will have a netball structure that has a clear vision and the same can apply to a soccer club. You can also have an athletic club that has a clear vision and mission, which will then build a competitive team. I hope Sen. Chimera will look for me in order for us to have a sit down and look at the minimum viable option of running these sports academy. It will not be right to get an employee to run or manage these committees. This is because sports runs on passion. A number of managers are actually coaches. They do not just coach the technical bit of the sport, but they also coach the mental bit. They have an understanding of the athletes as they work on developing their talent. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the technical aspect that is required in sporting might not necessarily be the degree that is prescribed here. It might not be necessarily the qualification prescribed here. It is more of the technical connection, passion and the valuable time that somebody has spent in sports that allows them to connect on the same level with the athletes. That enables the proper crafting of a compelling curriculum, which then constitutes a sports academy. A sports academy will not have a typical curriculum like that of a normal education system. It will require a curriculum based on the technical understanding of the management. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1563557,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563557/?format=api",
"text_counter": 292,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Oketch Gicheru",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "What is lacking here that needs some amendment is investment in safety. When a sports person gets injured and does not get proper treatment--- Sen. Chimera, you remember when I got SEL problem, I was on clutches for almost 12 months yet I am not a professional player. Therefore, you need to think about safety. The investment for safety is humongous. It is for this reason that ownership structure has to go back to clubs. It is in the clubs where you can ensure that there are resources, quality facilities and technological know-how. If you go and look at how Arsenal or Manchester United play, you will realise that the players have things that monitor their heart rates, performance in the field and endurance in the field. All these are technologies that can make help you start making waves in the sporting area. With that, you will be investing in the overall health and wellness of an athlete, which can make you competitive in terms of fostering a more collaborative community where athletes feel respected. When athletes do not feel respected in a space, where this county structure might put them or feel valued, their morale is always down hence they cannot compete at a global stage. So, the authors of this Bill should think about the ownership structure. We can work on some amendment that allows us to think about that ownership structure. However, I feel very strongly that the ownership of academies must be structured within our clubs and the county structure can support that in terms of capacity building of those clubs. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the marketing element can also be buoyed because we will not only be thinking of having our athletes in these academies, but we will also invite people from outside who might have the same talent just the same way we have seen Mariga leave Kenya to go and play for Inter Milan in Italy. That has given him an opportunity to meet people from Cameroon, Zambia and other places in the continent. One is then able to build a proper competing academy with that natural diversity pool in a corporate setting. You can then be able to market those academies and compete at a global stage. Otherwise, this is a brilliant idea, intention and motivation, but it must be informed by the science of sports of countries that have made strides within the domain of sports in general. I support this Bill, but there should be well drafted amendments to augment the ownership structure. I thank you."
},
{
"id": 1563558,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563558/?format=api",
"text_counter": 293,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wakili Sigei",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Thank you, Sen. Eddy. Sen. Gloria, you had put in a request. I do not want to take it to mean that you want to speak to this Bill. Proceed."
},
{
"id": 1563559,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563559/?format=api",
"text_counter": 294,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Orwoba",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I rise to support this Bill. I know that many people imagine that we do not know much about sports, but we are mothers of sons who are sportsmen. Our boys play football and are interested in understanding how they can even join the national teams. When I read this Bill and looked at what is currently happening, I realized that now more than ever, we, as women, have to come on board and support some of the things listed in this Bill. There is always an assumption Kenya does not know how to organize sports. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1563560,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563560/?format=api",
"text_counter": 295,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Orwoba",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "The other day, we had our team playing at Nyayo Stadium and I decided not to sit at the VIP section because I wanted to get the authentic experience of what it means to be at Nyayo Stadium. I wanted to feel the patriotic Kenyans who had come out to support our team. I heard them say that they know so and so who was playing. Some even said they were in school with certain players. I appreciated that sports is a unifying factor in this country. I support this legislation because it will ensure that we encourage the youth, from the grassroots level to join the teams, compete and bring unity. I also want to congratulate Sen. Chimera because he drafted this Bill and there was some input by Sen. Sifuna. Sen. Chimera should not leave us out when drafting a Bill like this. He should ask for our views because we also have things that we would like to add here and there. Congratulations, Sen. Chimera and I hope that this Bill is passed. I have a son who is 17-year-old and he wants to join the national football team. I hope that he will be a beneficiary of this piece of legislation. Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir."
},
{
"id": 1563561,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563561/?format=api",
"text_counter": 296,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wakili Sigei",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Hon. Senators, there being no other Member interested in contributing to the Bill, I ask Sen. Chimera to reply."
}
]
}