Francis Baya

All parliamentary appearances

Entries 41 to 50 of 186.

• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is true that visa requirements are checked right at the boarding point and this has been communicated to all airlines that come to Nairobi and other entries. In this particular case, there was confusion and that is why this traveler was allowed in the aircraft. When we profiled him, we found that he is a Somali who is a student in Ireland. I believe at the airport, wherever he boarded, he must have used that confusion that he holds Irish travel documents, but he is not an Irishman. This is where the problem was. view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I deny that our Ministry discriminates against anybody based on his or her religion. Religion is a personal thing and we would not want to interfere with it. But there are arrangements between countries where visas could be issued to their nationals in either country. It is true of some countries whose nationals could be issued with visas at Nairobi and they also reciprocate. For example, if a Kenyan travels to India or Singapore, for instance, he is not required to apply for visa from their mission here. He can get a visa right at the ... view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am very sure about this. There are those countries whose nationals can get visas from Nairobi and he has agreed to that. There are some countries whose nationals when they apply for visas, their applications are not referred to the Director of Immigration Services. However, there are some countries where it is mandatory that the application is made at the mission and must be referred to the Director of Immigration in Kenya for direction. view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would not like to involve religion here because these are arrangements between countries and have nothing to do with religion. Secondly, it is true that there are countries whose nationals are issued with visas right at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and they also treat our nationals the same. America is in the category where there is no need to refer the applications to the Director of Immigration Services. Those documents are dealt with and finalized at the missions. So, there are three categories. view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I cannot promise to do that and I have a reason for this. We work very closely with the Ministry of Tourism, the Department of Tourism in particular, and they have always requested us to lessen the grip because we have such a tight grip on our immigration laws. There are some countries whose nationals would like to visit our country, but our regulations do not allow. We have always agreed on which countries as long as those countries also reciprocate. We allow the nationals of these countries to pick visas at the airport. As we ... view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is true the Member’s constituency is flooded with people who have relatives out there. But in this particular case for Mohammed, he was supposed view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I will start with the last one. I do not know which words to use to the Member, but I was a High Commissioner in India, accredited to Singapore, Malaysia and Bangladesh. A number of Members here used to travel and that is the treatment. You can go there, stay for three months after which you can explain why and whether you want to increase the length of your stay. This is not a matter of guessing, but I saw it practically happen. With regard to hon. Yinda’s question, there is no discrimination against white, blue ... view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Constitution is a Kenyan Constitution for Kenyans. All the freedoms there, I believe, were made for Kenyans. However, as a country we must find ways and means of protecting ourselves. This has been documented. The documents I quoted here, the latest one is for last year. We also have the regulations of 2012. We put them in place to protect Kenyans. This particular gentleman, it does not matter whether he was English or black. If he had a visa - that stamp - that would have been fair for Members of Parliament to belabour on ... view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: That one I will consider. view
• 4 Sep 2012 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, as an Assistant Minister, I cannot arrange for people to travel to Kenya, but if he so wishes, he should submit a fresh application and we shall consider it. view