John Owuor Onyango Kobado

All parliamentary appearances

Entries 41 to 50 of 190.

• 7 Jun 2016 in National Assembly: I support this Bill but there are certain aspects that we really need to look at very critically to amend. I want to speak to Clause 3 that proposes to amend Section V of the Elections Act, 2011 for persons that are applying for national identity cards to register as voters before the issuance of the actual identity cards. This particular clause sounds malicious. I say so because we should give Kenyans the opportunity to elect the leaders that they feel can effectively represent them. There is duplication in the steps that a person goes through to be issued with ... view
• 7 Jun 2016 in National Assembly: time of registration but are likely to turn 18 years of age before the general election. They should also be allowed to register. Allow me to address myself to Clause 7 of this Bill. Clause 7 seeks to amend Section 22 of the Elections Act, 2011 to require minimum qualifications. The minimum qualifications have been set out as a diploma from a recognised institution for those who are running for seats in the county assembly and a degree for those who are aspiring to run for seats in the National Assembly or the Senate. Looking at this particular clause very ... view
• 7 Jun 2016 in National Assembly: The list is long. We should not consider qualifications as far as electing leaders is concerned. Finally, I want to speak to Clause 13. It is about requiring a certain number of voters prescribed to polling stations. This is important. If we are to achieve quality in elections, the first step is to standardise the processes. Standardising the process would mean creating uniformity in every polling station. You can only do that if the resources directed to every polling station are standard. view
• 23 Feb 2016 in National Assembly: Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to add my voice to this important Motion. In its amended form, the Report adds a lot of value to this House because we should not be using House privileges to settle political scores. Hon. Speaker, reports are not only meant for records, but they are critical instruments for decision-making. On that note, this Report is coming a little late when decisions about privatisation of the five State-owned factories have more or less been concluded. I want to believe that if this Report came in a little earlier, it would have ... view
• 23 Feb 2016 in National Assembly: You also remember that it is this particular Report that landed the entire Departmental Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Cooperatives in the Offices of the Ethics and Anti- Corruption Commission (EACC) to answer to charges of corruption. view
• 23 Feb 2016 in National Assembly: Hon. Speaker, when a report is prepared and there are delays, you open room for speculation. This is exactly what happened. The Report delayed with no proper explanation. As a Member of the Committee, at some point, I had an opportunity to chair the sub-committee that was writing this Report. I can say, without fear of contradiction, that there was, to a great extent, external interference trying to shape the outcome of this particular Report. view
• 23 Feb 2016 in National Assembly: It is also questionable that a Report that was tabled in May 2015 took a whole 10 months, close to one year, before it could be tabled for discussion. This again touches on the House Business Committee (HBC) which you chair. So, we wonder why that delay was there. By coincidence, at the time that the HBC was sitting to discuss this Report, the Head of State, His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta, was in Uganda negotiating a deal with the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni. view
• 23 Feb 2016 in National Assembly: I am corrected; I am told it is President-elect, Yoweri Museveni. Hon. Speaker, this raised eyebrows! If you look at the Report--- Of course, we have been talking about the legal advisers of the Head of State. Although we were talking about legal advisers but, you can see this is another case of trade mis-advise. If you look at Item 58 of the Report, it talks about intra-regional trade and rules of origin. It states:- “There is an urgent need for verification missions to visit countries which have high export history”. It goes on to say that:- “This specifically applies ... view
• 23 Feb 2016 in National Assembly: With regard to the cheap sugar that comes in, the Report is very clear. It has more or less named the sugar barons. If you look at Item 100, the companies have been named. The majority of the companies that have been named in this Report have origin in Uganda. We have Quick Sellers, Uganda; Arua Mercantile incorporated in Uganda; Uchumi Commodities incorporated in Uganda and Rising Stars also incorporated in Uganda. How then does the President negotiate a sugar deal with a country like this? These are issues that raise eyebrows. view
• 23 Feb 2016 in National Assembly: Those of us who come from the sugar belt, we feel the Government is not honest. There is a scheme to kill the sector. When you kill the sector, we are talking about close to 7,000,000 Kenyans whose livelihood depends on sugar. We really have to critically find a way of getting things on the road because, as we try to privatise, we should take cognisance of the fact the sector has been fully devolved. If we had the input of this Report, some of the decisions we are rushing to make in regard to privatisation could not have been ... view