Hon. Members, there is no quorum. Ring the Quorum Bell.

Very well. We now have quorum. Let us have the Leader of the Majority Party.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table of the House: Sessional Paper No.01 of 2019 on Reforming Education Training and Research for Sustainable Development. This withdraws the earlier submitted version of the policy document. Judiciary’s Budget Estimates for the 2019/2020 Financial Year and request for additional funding. Reports of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements in respect of the following institutions for the year ending 30th June 2018, and the certificates therein: (a) Kenya Accountants and Secretaries National Examinations Board. (b) The Office of the Attorney-General and Department of Justice. (c) Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service. (d) Commission for University Education. (e) Kenya Technical Trainers College, and (f) Kenya Re-insurance Corporation Limited. Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of the Kenya Institute of Supplies Management for the year ending 30th June 2017, and the certificate therein. Reports of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements of Imarisha Naivasha Trust for the years ended 30th June 2013, 30th June 2014, 30th June 2015 and 30th June 2016, and the certificates therein.

Let us have the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Health or a Member of the Committee. Let us hear Hon. Thuku Kwenya.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table of the House: 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.

The Report on a Petition by the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) and Boresha Maisha on enactment of legislation to provide for the national health referral and training hospitals and establishment of health service commission.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, aware that cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer in the country causing the greatest number of deaths with at least eight to 10 women succumbing every day to the disease; further aware that most women diagnosed with pre-cancerous changes in the cervix are in their 20s and 30s, but the average age of women when they are diagnosed with cervical cancer is mid-50s; considering that the human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most common viruses in the world with four out of five (80 per cent) persons getting some type of HPV at least once in a lifetime; cognisant of the fact that men and women can get HPV typically with the immune system getting rid of HPV without needing treatment; deeply concerned that the HPV is a major risk factor of cervical cancer with nearly 99.7 percent of cervical cancers being caused by infection from high risk HPV; appreciating that cervical cancer could be totally eliminated and further by putting preventative measures through timely treatments; this House, therefore, resolves that the national Government rolls out free screening services to all women and issuance of the HPV vaccines to boys and girls to reduce the mortality rates and completely eradicate deaths caused by cervical cancer in the country.

Very well. Next Order!

The first Question is by the Member for South Imenti, Hon. Kathuri Murungi.

(South Imenti, Independent) asked the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Coordination of National Government the following Question: (a) whether he could explain why Ukuu and Uruku Locations in South Imenti Constituency are served by Kariene Police Station and Githongo Law Courts, respectively, which are in Central Imenti Constituency; and, (b) what steps the Ministry is taking to ensure administrative boundaries are aligned with the sub-county and constituency boundaries for efficient service delivery. 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.

The Question is to be responded before the Departmental Committee on Administration and National Security. The next Question is by the Member for Kajiado North, Hon. Manje.

(Kajiado North, JP) asked the Cabinet Secretary for Water and Sanitation the following Question: (i) whether he is aware that the construction of the Kiserian Sewerage Treatment Plant has failed to commence since 2014 despite compensation of the property owners and the awarding of the project; (ii) whether he is further aware that lack of a proper sewerage system has negatively affected property owners in Kiserian Town and its environs; and, (iii) what measures the Ministry is putting in place to ensure that the said project commences and is fast-tracked to completion.

Very well. The Question will be responded to before the Departmental Committee on Environment and Natural Resources. Next Question is by the Member for Isiolo North, Hon. Hassan Hulufo.

(Isiolo North, KPP) asked the Cabinet Secretary for Education, Science and Technology the following Question: (i) whether he is aware that the construction of the Technical Training Institution in Merti, Isiolo North Constituency has stalled; (ii) what measures the Ministry has put in place to ensure that the construction is completed on time, and learning materials, equipment and tutors are posted to the said institution; and, (iii) whether the Ministry could provide an implementation matrix with clear timelines on the issues in item (ii) above, including when the first admission of students is expected.

The Question is to be responded before the Departmental Committee on Education and Research. The next Question is by the Member for Kilifi South, Hon. Richard Chonga.

(Kilifi South, ODM) asked the Cabinet Secretary for Education, Science and Technology the following Question: 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.

(i) whether he could explain the criteria used in identification of the constituencies where the proposed Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Institutions will be constructed; (ii) whether he is aware that the construction works for the proposed TVET Institute in Kilifi South Constituency are yet to commence; and, (iii) when the construction of the proposed TVET Institute for Kilifi South Constituency is expected to commence and be completed.

Very well. The Question will be responded to before the Departmental Committee on Education and Research. Hon. Members, the next Question is by the Member for Mathioya, Hon. Peter Kihara who has withdrawn the Question. Therefore, the Question stands withdrawn. It is not to be asked. The Member knows why he has withdrawn it.

(Bomachoge Chache, KNC) asked the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development the following Question: (i) whether he could consider prescribing a schedule of minor offences and appropriate corrective measures by way of instant fines that could be implemented so as to address unnecessary time lost by traffic offenders and police officers; and, (ii) what measures the Ministry has put in place to ensure the implementation of the instant fine measures on traffic offences.

The Question will be responded to before the Departmental Committee on Transport, Public Works and Housing. Finally, the last Question is by the Member for Bonchari, Hon. John Oyioka.

(Bonchari, PDP) asked the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Coordination of National Government the following Question: (i) whether he could state why the administration units namely, divisions, locations and sub-locations, that were approved and gazetted on 21st June, 2017, are yet to be effected; 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.

(ii) what action the Ministry is taking to ensure the units are functional in order to bring services closer to the people.

The Question is to be responded to before the Departmental Committee on Administration and National Security. That brings to an end of Questions. Let us have the Leader of the Majority Party.

Hon. Speaker, the Deputy Speaker is harassing me and the Member for Murang’a. As your Deputy, he should live up to that office. He is really harassing us. Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order No.44(2)(a), I rise to make a Statement on the business appearing before the House for the week beginning Tuesday, April 30th 2019 on behalf of the House Business Committee (HBC). The Committee met on Tuesday this week at the rise of the House to prioritise the business for consideration next week. The House is scheduled to consider the following Bills at Second Reading: (i) The Office of the County Attorney Bill (Senate Bill No.3 of 2018); (ii) The Statute Law Miscellaneous (Amendments) Bill (National Assembly Bill No.29 of 2019); and, (iii)The Nuclear Regulatory Bill (National Assembly Bill No.27 of 2019). We will also consider, in the Committee of the whole House, the Kenya Accreditation Services Bill (National Assembly Bill No.17 of 2018) and the Statute Law Miscellaneous (Amendments) No.2 Bill (National Assembly Bill No.13 of 2018). Also prioritised for debate is the Report of the Public Accounts Committee on the Examination of the Financial Statements for the National Government for the 2015/2016 Financial Year. I wish to mention that the 2nd National Assembly Leadership Retreat is scheduled to take place from 25th to 28th April 2019 in Mombasa. The resolutions agreed upon will, thereafter, be communicated to the House at the earliest possible time. I ask the Chairs, Vice-Chairs and the leadership to sacrifice this weekend and attend that high level leadership retreat where we have, among other people, key speakers as per the programme who will talk about issues of national importance which we will bring back to the House once the resolutions are adopted. In accordance with the provisions of Standing Order No.42(a)(5) and (6), I wish to convey that the Cabinet Secretary for Petroleum and Mining will appear before the Departmental Committee on Environment and Natural Resources on Tuesday, 30th April, 2019 to answer Question No.041/2019 from Hon. Jessica Mbalu, and Question No.165/2019 from Hon. Kubai Iringo. Finally, the House Business Committee will reconvene on Tuesday, 30th April, 2019 at the rise of the House to consider the business for the coming week. I wish to lay this Statement on the Table of the House.

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.

Before we proceed, Hon. Members, allow me to recognise the presence of pupils who are seated in the Public Gallery from Omobera Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Boarding Primary School from Bomachoge Borabu Constituency, Kisii County. They are welcome to see the proceedings of the House. Next Order!

I can see that there is a Member who has placed an intervention. Is he aware that he has done that? I am saying this because there are some Members who press the wrong buttons when they want to place requests to speak. The Member for Ainabkoi, you have placed an intervention. Do you want to say something?

No.

I see. Hon. Members, we are in Order No.8 in the Order Paper. For avoidance of doubt, I once again want to read out the names of those Members who contributed to this Motion, so that they may consider withdrawing their cards from the request list. The following Members have contributed so far: The Leader of the Majority Party who moved the Motion and was seconded by Hon. (Dr.) Pukose. Others are Hon. Danson Mwashako, Hon. Epuyo Nanok, Hon. Simon King’ara, Hon. Daniel Maanzo, Hon. Dida Jaldesa, Hon. Samuel Atandi, Hon. Katoo ole Metito, Hon. Mogaka Kemosi, Hon. Kubai Iringo, Hon. Makali Mulu, Hon. Ali Rasso, Hon. Godfrey Osotsi, Hon. Ruweida Obo, Hon. John Kiarie, Hon. Baya Yaa, Hon. (Ms.) Dennitah Ghati, Hon. Benjamin Washiali, Hon. Kiti Chonga, Hon. Doye Nakuleu, Hon. Abel Ogutu, Hon. Kilonzo Mutavi, Hon. Yussuf Haji, Hon. Ombaki Machogu, Hon. Oduol Adhiambo, Hon. Jackson Lekumontare, Hon. Mutua Barasa, Hon. Kirima Nguchine, Hon. Nyoro Ndindi, Hon. Achieng’ Gogo, Hon. Ichung’wah Kimani, Hon. Wakhungu Wamalwa, Hon. Mutunga Kanyuithia, Hon. Simiyu Eseli, Hon. Dawood Rahim, Hon. Wanga Nyasuna, Hon. Rindikiri, Murwithania, Hon. Ogolla Ochanda, Hon. Arbelle Malimo, Hon. Pamela Ochieng, Hon. Gichimu Githinji, Hon. Andrew Mwandime, Hon. Joseph Limo, Hon. Olago Aluoch, Hon. 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.

Maoka Maore, Hon. Odhiambo Okoth, Hon. Murugara Gitonga, Hon. Manje Wathigo, Hon. Janet Nangabo, Hon. Tum Tecla Chebet, Hon. Hulufo Oda, Hon. Mwangi Mburu, Hon. Oyula Maero, Hon. Wachira Kabinga, Hon. Duale Duhir, Hon. Ahmed Shabbir, Hon. Kogo Kipngetich, Hon. Sakwa Bunyasi John, Hon. Mutai Kiplangat, Hon. Kaunya Oku, Hon. Mohamed Osman, Hon. (Ms.) Wamuchomba Gathoni, Hon. Mlolwa Mwagogo, Hon. Koyi Waluke, Hon. Tuitoek Kamuren, Hon. Nyikal Wambura, Hon. (Ms.) Noor Sophia, Hon. Chepkut Chirchir, Hon. Kiai Githiaka, Hon. Wangari Mwaniki, Hon. Gure Mohamed, Hon. (Ms.) Yussuf Halima, Hon. Wambugu Ngunjiri, Hon. Ibrahim Abdisalan, Hon. (Dr.) Naomi Shaban and finally Hon. Jeremiah Kioni who has a balance of three minutes.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to contribute. I commended the President yesterday for the exposition of the public policy that he delivered in this House and his desire and commitment to fight corruption. I believe that we can fight corruption even better if we have an alternative voice. We appreciate that the “handshake” is useful for this country. We are already reaping the benefits from it. However, every time there is a contest, there will be a winner and loser. In our case, there will be the Leader of the Majority Party and the Leader of the Minority Party, which are positions which are provided for in our Constitution and Standing Orders with clear roles. When one is consumed by the other, the country is worse off because that alternative view is lost. However, I am not saying that we do not support the “handshake”. It is also good for those who do not get the mandate to form the Government to know that they have a role to play which is clearly stipulated in the Constitution. It is for that reason that the Minority Party is no longer referred to as the Opposition because we do not expect them to always oppose. They should bring an alternative view on board, so that the country can be better off.

I know that we are struggling with getting an opportunity for Members of Parliament to be appointed. One of the reasons the Cabinet Secretaries (CSs) were removed from the Floor of the House is because there was that tendency before that they would develop their constituencies first before they go to other areas. That persuaded Members then that we needed to have CSs from outside Parliament. I do not think it is useful anymore given what we are going through. One of the ways of ensuring that we are inclusive is ensuring that Members of Parliament also have an opportunity to be appointed as CSs.

I can see my time is up. The President’s Address was timely and good. We need to support it. However, even as we talk about the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI), let us not overpromise because you can only deliver at a certain level within the provisions of the Constitution. We are overpromising through the BBI which is dangerous for this country.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, the Member for Mwingi Central.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to support the President’s State of the Nation Address. The President’s Speech was one of his best. I want to commend him for bringing it. During that material day, we all noticed that there was no division in the House - Opposition or Government side. The President received more applause from the Opposition benches than the Government benches. Through the President’s Address, his rating increased substantially.

One of the key highlights of the President’s Speech is the “handshake” when he said that there is no turning back on it because it has transformed this country. It has removed people from the street demonstrations and it has brought peace in the country. As the Member for Mwingi Central, I support the “handshake” to be even extended to everybody all over the country. 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.

The other key highlight was on the reforms which the Government will bring to the country. One of them is universal healthcare, although it has not been felt in the country. The President should be supported to ensure that free healthcare reaches every citizen in this country. I will do anything possible to ensure that everybody gets free healthcare in the country. The other key highlight of the President's Address was the Big Four Agenda, especially housing. The housing component has lately received some opposition from workers. Even a court has given an injunction on the 1.5 per cent levy. I urge Kenyans to support the Big Four Agenda because it is what is going to transform the country and it is the legacy of the President. The other highlight of the President's Address was on the fight against corruption. He said that he knew we were waiting for him to sack some Cabinet Secretaries. But he said he was not going to do it until one is charged in a court of law. I agree with that position but ask the President to pull up his socks on the fight against corruption. We are losing a lot of money that is supposed to go to the development of the country.

He also spoke about small-scale businesses. We know there are many youths in the country idling in the streets. Therefore, supporting small businesses will help them.

He also spoke about supporting agriculture. We know there has been an early warning on drought that is coming, especially in Kitui County. There have been no rains. The rains that have come will be for just growing grass for cows and goats, but there will not be enough food. Therefore, I support the President’s initiative on agriculture so that there is enough food to feed Kenyans in the country. On that note, I urge the Government to ensure that nobody dies because of hunger, especially in my area. There should be enough supply of relief food, especially to schools to support the school feeding programmes.

Finally, the President spoke about infrastructure. Very little has been felt on infrastructure. We need a road network all over the country. The roads which were commissioned by the President are not being constructed. I ask the Government to make sure that the roads that were initiated by the President are completed on time.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I support.

Yes, the Member for Wajir South.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to support the President's Address of 4th April, 2019. I find the values of the Address to be exceptional. The President highlighted key things that are important to our country, to our people and to the world. The President touched on the major items that are valuable to the development of the country. The President's Address highlighted the Big Four Agenda. The Big Four Agenda will be his legacy. Because of that, we also feel that the Big Four Agenda is for the country and for our Jubilee Party. Obviously, I am highlighting that as a party member. It is one of the agenda that has resulted in my joining of the party and the decisions of the Executive.

The President asked the Executive to embark on development and reiterated that developing this country should not be questioned. That means we ensure we develop well.

The President highlighted other matters of value to us like peace, cohesion and unity. When they are present in a country, development will obviously occur. Because of that, I support the President's Address and the values it highlighted. It is also important for us to note that. The President was categorical that there is sufficient amount of food in the country. Although in my mind, I would have wanted to see more discussion on the current challenges communities across the country are facing like the severe drought. In particular, Wajir South has been facing severe drought that needs to be addressed immediately. The President mentioned that food security is one of his agenda. It is together with 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.

the other developments that he intends to have over the remaining part of his tenure. We want the Government to ensure that drought and food security has been addressed for the communities that are affected by drought.

Infrastructure is the other key thing that the President discussed. Infrastructure in Wajir South in particular has been a challenge. It has been a challenge because if Adam and Eve were to appear today, the only place they will recognise is Wajir South. It does not have sufficient infrastructure and other needs.

Healthcare is also important for us. Healthcare is lagging behind although it is in the Big Four Agenda. A lot needs to be done. As a member of the Departmental Committee on Health, I have obviously advocated for the development of the health of the country and, in particular, areas that have been lagging behind. The Equalisation Fund should support communities that are lagging behind in such fronts. Therefore, I urge the President's Address to be supported wholly and completely, and all the recommendations that have been put forth be considered.

The BBI is an important thing. However, as we build bridges, we should not break others. I request for one minute to complete my statement, Hon. Speaker. While BBI is good, we do not want to break other bridges.

I grant you one minute.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker for giving me the extra minute. As we build bridges, we do not want to break others. The bridges are more sustainable and stand forthright. Therefore, we need to consider that cohesion and community relations. The national handshake covers the entire country.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, the Member for Nairobi.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to comment on the President's Address. It was very nice having the President in Parliament to address us when we have the handshake. Both sides of the political divide were united in welcoming him and I think he felt the love of all the leaders across the country. We have a few issues that need to be addressed. Inclusivity in the handshake is one. As we try to unite the country, we should make sure that we do not create additional division and we sincerely unite every part of the country.

This afternoon we had a meeting with CS Matiang’i to talk about stateless citizens and we were happy because we were received well. We discussed inclusivity. Even those who came into the country during pre-independence through the British live amongst us. Some of them have been thriving on illegalities. We talked about how we can ensure that everyone in our country should contribute to the economy and social growth of this country. Obviously, we understand that there are security challenges. We want to protect our citizens. We must ensure that we deal with the issues of statelessness. The President has a four-point agenda, housing being one of them. We have realised that we have a problem in accepting the agenda on housing. It is purely because it has not been communicated to the grassroots. We have to stop doing things in big offices and not involving citizens. If the citizens had a chance to buy a house in this noble project of ensuring that every Kenyan has a house, I think we would not have a problem in getting Kenyans to agree to pay for it. If you look at Scandinavian countries, you will find that some are paying taxes to the tune of 60 per cent. They do not have a problem paying those taxes. It is because they are assured of good medical attention when they go to hospitals. They get medication at an affordable rate. 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.

When they go to schools and universities, they get the best education that is of international standards. Their food is also affordable. Look at what has happened in Sudan. The movement and rebellion really started as a result of the Government removing subsidies on bread and wheat. The people said: “No!” Here in Kenya, there is a cry about unga . We should, as a Government, not ignore the fact that issues about food are emotive. Even as we look at housing and food security, we need to ensure that food is affordable. It is not enough to threaten the millers. What we have to do, as a Government, is to ensure that we have a lot of produce. We must ensure that agriculture is affordable. We have talked about irrigation many times. The President commended us for passing the Irrigation Bill. He left out the Children Bill and the Gender Bill in his Speech. I feel that he has somehow connected with what Parliament is doing but, at the same time, there is a disconnect with certain issues that are emotive. At the moment, our country is faced with big numbers of cancer patients. We have been crying and asking for cancer to be declared a national disaster. That has not been done. We have a lot of femicide cases. Almost every week, women are being raped and butchered. We also have men being sodomised and butchered and yet, we are not addressing sexual and gender-based violence as a national disaster. How many people will die before we look into that? All in all, the President made a good Address. I ask the people who sit around the President and advise him to bring him closer to the grassroots. It is not the technocrats that have information; it is the grassroots. So, if he connects with the grassroots and gets to understand the level of poverty and then make his agenda around poverty alleviation, I believe the President will be in a position to make an address that will be accepted by the citizenry at large. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, the Member for Soy.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I hope I have not eaten into my time. I was consulting with the Member of Parliament for Chepalungu. I rise to support the Presidential Address that took place on 4th April, 2019. I commend His Excellency the President of the Republic of Kenya for having found time to come and brief Parliament and the whole nation on the issues and agenda that he has for this country. The President mentioned “not turning back on the Big Four Agenda, the fight against corruption, pushing Kenya forward and trailblazing all our activities in this country” many times in his Speech. I would like to commend the President for his focus on agriculture, which is the key factor in the constituency I represent. About 99 cent of the people I represent or those who elected me to this House are farmers. We would like to see that anything that deals with agriculture is looked into and given the attention it deserves, especially the subsidy programme for fertiliser and any other programme that will help farmers. Sports are also a key issue that was mentioned by His Excellency the President. We would like to thank him for singling out Eliud Kipchoge who brought and continues to bring honour to this nation. We would like to see, as we move forward, county governments where those great athletes come from name some streets and some buildings in honour of those great athletes who continue to put our name high up on the world map. 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.

We also congratulate His Excellency for having recognised the efforts of one teacher, Mr. Peter Tabichi, who has put Kenya on the world map on issues of education due to his dedication to help the less fortunate in our society. That is a great achievement. On the issue of fighting corruption, we support His Excellency the President. We are happy that he put it very clear in his Address that vigilante groups and newspaper headlines will not help us fight corruption, but serious investigations will. We are happy that we are no longer seeing screaming headlines. We know the fight against corruption is going on vigorously. On the issue of the handshake, we want to say that we are happy when we see those who were opposed to Jubilee programmes accompany the President to China to go and source for further funds for the development of the SGR. We are very glad. We ask that this House becomes the one that initiates and proceeds to build more bridges. With regard to the issue of the security of the nation, MPs and all Kenyans are very key. It was very disturbing when we saw and heard last week that some MPs had their security withdrawn. We also heard that there was a hitch when the Deputy President, who is the Chief Deputy Principal to His Excellency the President, visited a part of this country. There was no security to receive him or provided at his function. Security is a very key issue. We ask all officers given jobs not to take any verbal instructions from anybody. That is because what we hear is that there was a verbal instruction for security to be withdrawn from MPs and other centres. We want every security officer and every officer of Government to ensure that whatever instructions you are given, be they even from the President or the Deputy President, are in writing. That is so, so that you do not to misuse the offices you occupy on behalf of Kenyans. As much as we appreciate the handshake, we would like to ask our brothers in the Minority Party not to forget that they have a duty to be the watchdog or to be the watchmen over the Government in what it does. We would like to ask them not to over-embrace the handshake and forget that they still need to perform their duty as the Opposition or the Minority Party in the House. Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to support.

The Member for Kitui West, you have the Floor.

Thank you Hon. Speaker for giving me this opportunity to address the President’s Speech. Let me first take this opportunity to say that the President gave a very well-balanced Address to the nation. It tried to address the concerns of both sides of Government, including the Opposition. It encourages cohesion and peace. A country develops where there is cohesion and peace. So, I support his Address to the nation. His Address to the nation touched on various issues concerning our nation. He actually talked about the Big Four Agenda. It is my hope that the Big Four Agenda will translate to job creation because unemployment is one of the major problems we have in our country. So, we are waiting to see the Big Four Agenda translate to creating more jobs, especially for the youth who have become very desperate. The President addressed the issue of corruption which, up to now, Kenyans feel defeated especially when they perceive that the officers in power, who are supposed to protect them, are not protecting them, but instead are misusing their resources. The country is suffering mainly from high cost of living that is made worse by the constant reports of lack of respect for their resources. So, as Kenyans, we must join the President in the fight against corruption because he will not do it alone. Hon. Speaker, the other issue that the President addressed was food security. It was welcome during this time that we have a long drought because the rains took long to come. There 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.

are areas where the Government should ensure that Kenyans do not suffer from lack of food. For example, in Kitui County and Ukambani in general, it has been dry. I urge the Government to ensure that there is food security so that we do not get food aid. The President also addressed security, high cost of living and corruption. Corruption should be declared a national disaster. I call upon all Kenyans to participate in curbing this vice. If that is done, the country will have resources enough for each and every one of us. A French economist, Frederic Bastiat once said that when plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men in the society, over the course of time, they create for themselves a legal system that authorises it and an immoral code that glorifies it. Kenyans believe that this is what has become of their leadership. It is high time that those of us who have sought this work of representation help our people rise against corruption and fight it, so that we have enough resources for all of us. I support the President’s Address to the nation. Thank you.

The Member for Laikipia County, you have the Floor.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to join the rest of the Members of Parliament who have spoken ahead of me. I laud His Excellency the President of the Republic of Kenya, Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta, on his Presidential Address made on 4th April, 2019. I want to thank him, in particular, for addressing issues that Kenyans highly anticipated that he will highlight and for boosting the confidence of those of us who are in this country struggling because of life being unbearable because of the high cost of living. I want to remind us about the long-term strategies, including the Kenya Vision 2030, the medium-term plan of the year 2018-2021, and the Big Four Agenda that the President has continually been championing. The President came out strongly by stating that the economic growth rate was at 6.1 per cent, which is an improvement from 5.4 per cent. I want to use a language that the ordinary mwananchi will speak out there. When most of us talk about 6.1 per cent economic growth, it may not mean a lot to people who have good income and their income patterns are towards the increasing end. We have a number of Kenyans in this country who earn less than Kshs250 a day. The cost of unga has risen to over Kshs120. Most of those people are not able to afford three meals in a day. I will concentrate on manufacturing. It is one of the Big Four Agenda that the President has been talking about. In my county, Laikipia, we do not have a single industry, a kiwanda, which is functional and which can provide employment other than what the private sector is doing. My concern is one: What are we going to do to make sure that county governments are able to generate enough income so that they do not milk money from the pockets of people who have made it through their blood and sweat? That money is non-existent. The National Treasury and county governments should be well funded to meet the national Budget. There was a time the Budget and Appropriations Committee made a good proposal of asking that the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS) be linked with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) system so that we are able to project how much this country is able to collect against what we will be planning for in any budget that will be coming. Bearing in mind that the Supplementary Budget II is about to come, the big question is: Do we have enough resources to sustain our big ambitions and the projections we have given out as a country? This is a House of rules that has been solely obligated by the Constitution to pass the Budget and legislations that will take care of the interests of our people. My concern is: Are we 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.

able to increase the collection of revenue? Is wanjiku in mashinani able to get enough food so that she can give the Government money? Hon. Esther Passaris, the Nairobi County Women Representative mentioned something to do with affordable housing. I will not shy away from saying that it is not popular in mashinani . For example, there is a woman – the wife to the former Senator of Laikipia County, the late GG Kariuki – who asked me: “For an elderly person like me, if the Government starts taxing me housing levy, for how many years will I actualise it?” For couples who are married, when they are both paying the house levy, when will they get their house when the distribution will be by lottery? On this matter, my concern is that the Government must engage members of the public and this House, like it has been stated in the Kenyan Constitution. Anything that will be forced down the throats of people will not be allowed. There was no adequate public participation in regards to the National Integrated Identity Management System (NIIMS). We do not know who won this tender. It was single-sourced. It is alleged that the company that won the tender has been blacklisted in other countries because of poor and shoddy performance and lack of compliance. The other thing is on the Fuel Levy. This House came to a standstill because of that Levy. From the Fuel Levy, we now have…

The Member for Ndhiwa Constituency, the Floor is yours. Hon. Members, I want to encourage you to observe the light.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Before I make my comments, I want to appreciate the environment that we accorded the President to talk to us. It showed dignity to Kenyans and the Office of the President. That should be credited to the handshake. So, do not take the handshake shallowly. One thing that I want to commend the President for is putting health first and as one of the Big Four Agenda. He mentioned that he is committed to this and he wants to reduce child mortality, infant mortality, neo-natal mortality and all maternal mortalities. We support him, especially our Committee. We will make sure, as a committee, that we do all we can for this to be realised. As we rebase the Kenyan economy, it is important to say that immunisation vaccines that we use are still being provided by an organisation called the “Global Alliance for Vaccine” (GAVI). That organisation will exit in 2027 and right now, as Kenyans, we do not have any roadmap on how we will buy our vaccines. We are struggling with the burden of diseases, but the vaccines are being provided by somebody else. What if that was to be removed and nobody is immunised. How will we handle diseases? We, therefore, ask that the donor-dependency be looked into so that we take the health of Kenyans in our hands. We cannot talk about health without talking about food. That has been said many times. I am encouraging those who are implementing presidential policies and speeches like this, to take irrigation very seriously and add value to our products. If we could have small industries in Ndhiwa, we could supply all counties with peanut butter because we grow groundnuts in plenty. We could do the same with soya because we grow soya beans in plenty. It is the same with potatoes because we grow a lot of sweet potatoes. So, when we have manufacturing as one of the pillars of the Big Four Agenda, then let us decentralise in rural areas and add value so that we can create employment and ensure there is food security. We also got a pat on our backs as parliamentarians in this House for having passed very many Bills, but we want to encourage the President to sign the Health (Amendment) Bill. As a Committee, we put in a lot of hours in that Bill, and very many things are hanging on it. It is 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.

coming back to us as a committee because it has not been assented to, to become an Act of Parliament. So we are asking the President to sign this Bill so that it can be operationalised. There is also an issue which a Member talked about, that measuring economic growth in terms of percentage is global. We can brag that our economy that grows at 6.1 per cent is doing well, but that is not a true reflection in the households of many Kenyans. We could hold that as a standard globally, but it is prudent to look at why some people are doing very well in Kenya while others do not know where the next meal will come from. Some are living below Kshs100 a day and they do not know where they will get another one tomorrow. Many kids are still out of school. School drop-outs are too many because of poverty levels. As we say the economic growth is at 6 per cent, let us look at other parameters so that we can look at the suffering of other Kenyans.

With that, I appreciate the President and ask those who are implementing these policies to move with speed and implement what was on that paper. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Hon. Mishi Mboko, you have the Floor.

Ahsante sana, Naibu Spika wa Muda kwa kunipatia nafasi hii ili niweze kupongeza Hotuba ya Mheshimiwa Rais. Hotuba yake ilikuwa Hotuba ya kizalendo na ya kujenga taifa la Kenya. Aliongea juu ya maendeleo ya kimsingi ya taifa letu. Wakati alizungumzia mambo ya umoja kupitia kile tunaita “ handshake” alisema ni jambo ambalo hatarudi nyuma ila atalizingatia sana. Sisi kama Wakenya, tumeona umuhimu wa

kwa sababu tumeona amani na upendo katika taifa letu. Pia, tumeona sekta nyingi zikistawi. Vile vile, Rais alizungumzia mambo ya ugatuzi na akasema hatarudi nyuma. Ni jukumu letu kama viongozi haswa Bunge la Seneti, liwe chonjo kujua pesa ambazo zimetolewa katika ugatuzi zitamfaidi Mkenya. Kama Wakenya, tuweze kufanya kile tunaita kwa Kiingereza, socialaudit, ili tuweze kujua faida ambayo tunapata katika mambo ya ugatuzi. Vile vile, ningependa kuzungumzia wajibu wa kitaifa katika mambo yakiulimwengu. Kwa Kiiingereza, tunasema international obligations . Ninajua taifa letu limeweza kuweka sahihi mikataba tofauti tofauti, ikiwemo ule mkataba wa African Free Trade Area Agreements ambayo itatuwezesha kupata bidhaa na huduma kwa njia rahisi ikiwa tariffs zitawekwa chini. Vile vile, kuna mikakati ambayo ni itifaki ya East African Community ambayo kama taifa tumeshirikiana na ndugu zetu katika jumuiya ya East African Community . Ninataka niseme kama taifa, wakati tunaweka mikataba hii, ikiwa ni ya mataifa mawili ama zaidi ya mataifa mawili, lazima tuwe waangalifu. Ninasema hivyo kwa sababu ninaangalia mkataba wa madaktari wa Cuba na madaktari wa taifa letu la Kenya. Madaktari wetu waliweza kupata shida na changamoto sana. Nimeathirika kwa sababu nilipoteza kakangu ambaye alikuwa katika msururo wa madaktari kama wale. Tulipata changa moto sana wakati wa kifo chake kwa sababu walipokua wanamfanyia postmortem … Kwanza, sisi kama Waislamu hatufanyi postmortem . Hatukuulizwa 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.

suala lile. Postmortem ilifanyika pasipo daktari wetu wowote wa Kenya kuweza kuhusishwa kama shahidi. Wakati mwili ulifika Kenya, tulisema tupate pathologist wetu wa Kenya ndio afanye

. Tulishtuka tulipopata kuwa viungo vyote vyake vya ndani mpaka ubongo vilikuwa vimeondolewa. Tulipouliza kwa wizara, tuliambiwa ni sheria ya Cuba, kuwa, wakifanya

, viungo hutolewa na kuhifadhiwa. Serikali ilipotuma delegation kwenda Cuba, kuuliza kuhusu viungo hivyo, walisema walivichoma. Hili ni jambo ambalo limeumiza familia kwa sababu tuna maadili yetu kama Wakenya na kama Waafrika. Iwapo postmortem ilifanyika na wakatoa viungo, kwa uchache wa elimu yangu, ninajua hata hapa Kenya, wakati wa postmortem, si viungo vyote hutolewa? Hukatwa hata sehemu ndogo ndogo ili waangalie sababu ya kifo cha mwendazake. Kwa hivyo, jambo kama hili lilitutamautisha sana. Wakati tunaweka mikakati kama hiyo, lazima tujue, sisi kama Wakenya, tukiwa nchi za nje, tuna sheria zetu, tuna maadili yetu na tuna mambo yetu ambayo ni lazima yafuatwe. Mheshimiwa Rais alizungumzia mambo ya agenda nne kubwa. Alizungumzia kwa upana kuhusu viwanda, na ninashukuru sana. Kule Mombasa, tayari Serikali ina mikakati ya kuanzisha

na kutakuwa na viwanda tofauti tofauti kama vile vya nguo za EPZ na viwanda vya ngozi. Viwanda kama hivyo vitaleta ajira nyingi kwa watoto wetu, haswa kwa vijana wetu. Mheshimiwa Rais alisema kutakuwa na Mswada unaoitwa Sovereign Wealth Funds Bill ambao utazungumzia yale mapato kutoka rasilmali zetu kama mafuta, gasi na madini. Tuna madini mengi sana kule Kwale na mafuta kule Turkana. Cha msingi, lazima tuangalie wakaazi na wenyeji wataweza kufaidika vipi na madini na rasilmali zile kupitia Mswada huu ambao utaletwa. Katika jambo la usalama, ninataka turejeshe zile programmes za NYS ili tuweze kuwapatia vijana wengi ajira. Vijana wengi wameingia katika magenge ya kigaidi.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Your time is over, Hon. Mishi Mboko. The next one on my request list is the Member for Marakwet East, Hon. Bowen Kangogo.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to join my colleagues who have spoken before me to congratulate our President for the good Address to the nation and to this House. The reports before us by the President are to do with international obligations, realisation of national values and state of national security. Those are the three reports which the President laid before this House. The President’s Speech was very balanced and it touched on the main issues which many Kenyans are struggling to get answers to. The President touched on the issue of corruption in the country which has been a big disease and it has brought development in the country to almost a standstill. The good thing is that the President said whenever we are addressing the issue of corruption we should follow the due process. It is very important that we have laws in this country which address issues of corruption. We have the constitutional institutions which are mandated to check on issues of corruption. As a House, we need also to strengthen institutions like the EACC so that they are in a position to fight economic crimes which are very rampant in the country. I want to thank the President for saying that we should avoid the vigilante groups that are lynching individuals and tarnishing peoples’ names using newspapers and some social media sites and, instead, we use the Constitution. 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.

On the issue of the handshake, it is under the realisation of national values. The President insisted that it is good for leaders to come together through the BBI, which we all support. We are saying it should embrace all Kenyans. In doing so, we should not build new bridges and destroy existing ones. As we build new bridges, we need also to make sure that the country is not divided. On the issue of the Big Four Agenda, we all support it. We should not be talking about the Big Four Agenda and the BBI every day and every morning. This is the time they should be realised and felt by the common mwananchi on the ground, so that when we are talking about all the development projects they should be felt by the common wananchi . We are told the economy has grown by almost 6.1 per cent, but if you go to the ground, you will see people are still crying. There is no money in their pockets and students are still at home. There are people who not able to even take their children to school. Let this economy be felt by the common mwananchi. If they are able to put food on their tables, that is what we call the economy of the country. On this issue of the Big Four Agenda, especially on the issue of housing, I want to request that we all need consultations. When you talk about employees being deducted 1.5 per cent of their salaries, those are people who already have their own plans of housing and you want to deduct their salaries again. Some of them are teachers in the villages. When are they going to purchase houses in towns? The last thing is about national security, which is actually No.3. The President addressed this House on national security, but some of us come from places where the issue of security is very important. There is cattle rustling. We want to tell the PS who has withdrawn the security of our colleagues that there are serious national security issues along the Kerio Valley which he needs to address. I want to support, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

The Member for Westlands, Hon. Wetangula Wanyonyi, you have the Floor.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me a chance to also contribute to the President’s Address to the nation. The President talked extensively about the BBI. I think this is the legacy that the President will leave to this nation, for trying to unite the country and also for reaching out to his political competitor so that they can talk to bring the country together after elections. You will realise immediately after elections, we had a lot of issues emanating from the bungled elections, the IEBC, the reforms and all manner of things. But the President and the Rt. Hon. Raila Odinga showed their statesmanship by rising and coming together to bring the country together. That is one of the things that the President spoke about extensively and he said he will not relent and he will not go back on what they agreed with the Rt. Hon. Raila Odinga. The BBI is something that has now gone beyond the two individuals. It now embraces the whole country. The team that was constituted by the President and the Rt. Hon. Raila Odinga is going round collecting views from Kenyans. They will come up with a report that will help this country, so that we do not come from an election and look like we had gone to war. This is something that we need to look into very critically, especially reforms at IEBC, which is one of the most contentious issues that has happened after every election. Kriegler said that we should not let gods determine our election results. We go to election and then we go to court. This does not augur well. Last time when the court nullified the presidential election, if it was another 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.

country, that was a tall order. We must congratulate our leaders that we held together. That is what brings about the BBI. The President also spoke extensively about the Big Four Agenda. I think some of these Big Four Agenda are also captured in Vision 2030. I do not see why we want to force some things, especially the housing project which is already creating a lot of issues. The manner they are doing it is not going to resonate very well with Kenyans, especially given that Kenyans are over-taxed. If people are going to be taxed again for the housing project… I think the Government should look for an alternative way of funding this project if it has to do it. Alternatively, the Government can just lower or remove some of the levies on the materials that people use for construction. That will help reduce the cost of construction and people can build their own houses. The other thing that we must look at - and which is captured in the Big Four Agenda - is health. In this country, we have a lot of issues. People are dying of opportunistic diseases, and hospitals are in a very sorry state. We must look at it so that, as a country, we can invest in areas that are going to help the people. The people of this country deserve the best. Since Independence, 50 years down the line, we must look at what we have done and what we can leave when we exit from the stage.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Very well. Hon. Members, I am informed that you have the Address on your iPads. Kenyans should know that we have gone paperless.

Let us have the Member for Mathira, Hon. Gachagua.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I support the President’s Address on the Floor of this House early this month. The Address was full of wisdom and statesmanship. I am particularly impressed and happy that the President made it clear that the issue of national unity and peaceful coexistence is a prerequisite for development and for our people to prosper. The reason the President has tried to create peace is for our people to have a conducive working environment, make money, take care of their hospital bills, provide food and educate their children. In that aspect, I appeal to those who are charged with the responsibility of assisting the President with the management of the affairs of this nation to take cue from him. This is because we have created an atmosphere that is peaceful for people to do business. But I am sorry to say that the people from the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government have let him down by failing to enforce immigration laws.

We have very good immigration laws in this country that protects our people from unfair competition from foreigners. If you visit the streets of Nairobi such as Nyamakima, Kirinyaga, Luthuli and Taveta Roads, you will realise that the influx of the Chinese people has driven our people out of business. All those people who are doing manual jobs like roasting maize, repairing punctures and selling electrical goods have the skills that are required in this country. So, I am appealing to the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government to take time and enforce immigration laws and protect our peoples’ businesses from the Chinese immigrants. I ask the Ministry not to waste time on things that are not important such as withdrawing security of Members of Parliament. Instead, it should focus on enforcing immigration laws.

Secondly, I applaud the President for insisting that he is not turning back on the war against corruption. At the same time, he made it clear that this is a country that is governed by the rule of law and there is no vigilante justice. Previously, before the President’s Address, we 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.

saw kangaroo courts in funerals, churches and weddings where people were playing the role of the accuser, investigator, prosecutor, judge and the executioner. That cannot be allowed to happen. So, the President has done his bit and we ask those people who are saying that he should do more to give him space. He has done what he needs to do. He has given the institutions fighting corruption the necessary financial resources and the much needed political goodwill. What is remaining is for those institutions to do their job professionally. They should stop looking for newspaper headlines, prosecuting people through the media, through leaking information to the Press and do a professional job. They should take people to court and secure convictions. The success of the DCI, the EACC and the DPP will not be judged by the number of press conferences that they hold, but by the number of convictions they get in court after adducing proper and solid evidence that can secure a conviction.

I thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Let us have the Hon. Member for Igembe South. Hon. Mwirigi Paul, the youngest Hon. Member in the House.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I support the President’s Address.

Most of the things that he touched on deal with the youth. As stated in the Big Four Agenda on manufacturing, I urge that, at the implementation stage, they should factor in young people. We have many jobless graduates. Let them be absorbed so that they can benefit through this agenda.

He also talked about the agricultural sector which is the backbone of the country. During the budgeting process, it should be factored in to safeguard food security. Currently, some parts of this country are hunger-stricken. If, indeed, agriculture is the backbone of this country, it must be subsidised so that perennial hunger can be eradicated in this country completely.

The President said that there is Kshs3 billion that has been set aside for coffee farmers. I ask for equitable distribution by the relevant ministry since most farmers in this country grow coffee. On education matters, he said he will be focusing on the physical infrastructure within the institutions. Currently, there is 100 per cent transition from primary to secondary schools. The Ministry of Education should equitably distribute funds to institutions so that we can have enough facilities for the students to use.

The Head of State equally said that we, as Hon. Members, have a hand in education through the NG-CDF by putting up infrastructure. I urge the Ministry of Finance to be releasing funds to NG-CDF early enough so that we can have money to invest in education.

Finally, the Address was neutral. He urged us to support him in the BBI.

With that, I beg to support.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Very well. Hon. Members, I have 16 requests from Hon. Members who want to contribute to this Motion. I can assure you that we only have five minutes for each Member. Hon. Members for us to avoid repetition or beating about the bush, as I said, we are debating the President’s Address day three which is on your iPad. We are looking at the following areas: (a) 6th Annual Report of the Progress Made in Fulfillment of the International Obligations of the Republic; (b) 6th Annual Report on the Measures Taken and Progress Achieved in the Realisation of National Values and Principles of Governance; and, 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.

(c) Annual Report to Parliament on the State of National Security. So we can be relevant to the President’s Address. Member for Kinangop.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for this opportunity to add my voice to the State of Nation Address by the President. From the outset, I want to support the sentiments he made in this House on 4th April 2019.

One thing that caught my attention was his gratitude to the National Assembly for the passage of 22 Bills. We may seem not to be working but the President recognised that we have done that which we were elected to do which is to legislate. Therefore, I want to applaud his support for this arm of Government which is one of the three arms of Government as stipulated in the Constitution.

On the same note, I wish to support with all sincerity his initiative with the former Prime Minister on the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI). Sadly, there is some section of the society which is hiding behind BBI to scuttle the process and ensure that there is division and wedge out the governing party. Of course, we cannot take this kindly as a people and legislators. This is because we would want a situation whereby, in as much as we are building bridges, we should ensure we are only getting cohesive and not putting a wedge between ourselves.

What the President and former Prime Minister are trying to do is to pacify the political temperatures and have a conducive working environment. But, when we get the undertones that this BBI is meant to achieve some political rent, then we lose the very purpose for which it was formed. I noted that there is some money that is going to be paid from the exchequer to support the same. We must not play politics with such a beautiful initiative that is meant to bring this country together.

I would wish to see a situation whereby everybody who was elected in this House is able to do what they were elected to do. Those who are in the minority should check on the Government because we need Opposition to play the role of checks and balances as to the excesses of the Executive. If we see the people who are supposed to check the Government are same people who are going to bed with the Government then we are losing it. I would wish to see a situation whereby every Member of this House…

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Order, Hon. Thuku Kwenya, Member for Kinangop. There is a point of order but, Hon. Wanga, I cannot see your intervention and you know how we do it here. Yes, I can see a point of order from Hon. Wanga.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. Hon. Thuku is my good friend and I know he is a first time Member of this House. But, is he really in order to mislead this House that there is a side of this House that is supposed to be checking the Government and has gone to bed with it? We know that under the new constitutional dispensation the responsibility to oversee the Government or the Executive lies with the entire National Assembly and the Senate. I would like to imagine that maybe he is still orienting himself. I thought a year was long enough for Hon. Thuku to get to know what the Constitution says.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Was this a point of order because you have said he is misleading the House or a point of information? Yes, Hon. Thuku. 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.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I do not want to take offence from what has been said by my colleague, Hon. Wanga, but I just want to state a fact. There are people in the party that formed the Government and there are others in the party that lost the elections and they are the ones supposed to give checks and balances to the party that formed the Government.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Hon. Thuku, I am sure you are aware of the duties and responsibilities of MPs, but please be guided and carry on.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I stand guided, but of course, my minutes have been taken. I would want to applaud the address by the President especially on the issue of manufacturing. But, we do not want to just speak about the Big Four Agenda without factoring money into the Budget. In the last Budget there was nothing allocated for manufacturing, food security and the Housing fund which is becoming something else in this country. We need to get to a point where we should move a Bill in this House to form the Housing Fund Act, so that we can have a board to manage this fund because it will be the next big…

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Your time is over. Sometimes we must avoid issues that can bring controversy or raise points of order by Members. We have not put this in our Standing Orders so, let us avoid issues that raise points of order. The Speaker is well informed to rule out a Member who offends the Standing Orders. So, Hon. Members, be guided. Member for Kirinyaga Central, Hon. Wambugu Munene.

It is this side now.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Order, Hon. Members! There is nothing like this side. We cannot punish a Member who came a long time ago. I know what time you came in and I am even aware you do not have a card; though you will get your time very soon.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. It is true that I have been here since 2.30 p.m. From the outset, I want to support the President’s Speech on the State of the Nation Address. It is a speech which came from a true statesman. What caught my attention in the speech is what he affirmed, that he will continue with the war on corruption. He said there is no retreat on that war because corruption has eroded confidence of Kenyans in this country.

Going forward, I think the institutions which are supposed to fight corruption are the Judiciary, Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC). We should now move from too much talk to action. Something else I liked about the President’s Speech is that this war must be fought within the confines of the law. We are the law makers and we are here to make laws. It is only fair that whatever laws are there we use them to fight corruption. Otherwise, if we do not do this it will turn around and come to haunt the country.

More importantly on the BBI, we have to appreciate that Kenya is made up of about 43 communities and this country belongs to all of us. What the President and the former Prime Minister demonstrated is a level of maturity that once elections are over, we can all sit together shake hands and talk like brothers. This is because at the end of the day this country belongs to the winners and losers and the winners of today may be the losers tomorrow. So, we must appreciate this and support the President on the BBI so that the country can move forward. 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.

The President also commented on the issue of food security. Of the Big Four Agenda, what is very close to my heart is food security and universal health coverage. Why food security? We all know that the economy of this country is actually agricultural-based. It is through agriculture that over 60 per cent of our population earns its living. We just need to fix agriculture and 60 per cent of our problems will be gone. A case in point is my constituency and my county where we grow tea, coffee, rice and horticultural products. If we just fix prices and markets for tea, coffee, rice, maize and sugar most of our problems will be solved as a country and this will help us realise Vision 2030. You do not require a rocket scientist to fix agriculture in Kenya. We know that the main undoing of our agriculture in Kenya is, first of all, insufficient budgetary allocation. The country needs to move ahead and we start investing more in our agriculture.

The other issue bedevilling our agriculture is actually the cartels. Sugar, coffee and tea sub-sectors are full of cartels. If we can fix that and then we do value addition, we will be able to solve most of the problems bedevilling the agriculture sector. I beg to support the speech by the President.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Next is the Member for Samburu North, Hon. Lentoimaga Musa.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. I rise to support the President’s State of the Nation Address. Just as my colleagues have said, we are really impressed and we are happy that the address by the President dwelt so much on the unity of this country. For some time, we realised that unity was actually elusive. Most times, after elections, people remain disunited and they have a lot of anger against one another. The handshake that the President initiated in March last year actually has gone a long way to bring unity and peace across the spectrum of the whole country. It has actually even started bearing some fruits. Development is going on without noise. We are working. The country is so peaceful. We commend the President for that.

However, in northern Kenya, we still lack a lot of development programmes. I see that the handshake and the BBI have brought a lot of resources in other parts of the country, but where I come from, there is very little that we can show.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Where do you come from?

I come from Samburu North and we have shortage of food. There is no infrastructure and electricity. People are very hungry because of the drought. I think this initiative by the President should spread across the entire northern Kenya. There is the issue of the Equalisation Fund. The drafters of the Constitution deliberately put Article 204 in order to have resources in place to assist the counties that were left behind in terms of development because of marginalisation right from the time of colonialism up to the period after Independence, which is 50 years. We call upon the President to make deliberate effort and ensure that those resources are put in place. I did not hear the President address the rampant insecurity in northern Kenya, especially where I come from, Samburu North. People are still being killed day in, day out. Even policemen are killed by marauding bandits and people who have sophisticated weapons. This Tuesday, three policemen were injured and one was killed even as they were using the Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC). Our people do not care about those APCs, that is, bulletproof vehicles that can block shooting. Our young men do not care about that. They are so immune to law and order. They do not care about whether there is law and order or not. This Government should put measures in place to restore law and order in some of these places where we get people who are 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.

highly armed and who have sophisticated weapons and are even better than the police themselves. Something should be done. We are losing policemen from communities which have nothing to do with cattle rustling. The officer who was shot and killed, an inspector, is from Nyanza. He does not know what is going on in that village. He is on duty because he is employed to do that, but he dies innocently like that. In other countries, killing a policeman is really a serious offence but in this country it is not. Four years ago, 42 policemen were killed in Baragoi and nothing was done to prevent other killings. It has happened again and nothing is being done to ensure that law and order is restored in that particular area. My time is up. I commend the President but I want the Government to do more than it is doing now in preventing lawlessness in Samburu North.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): I confirm that you are the representative of the people of Samburu North. Next is the Member for Bomet Central, Hon. Tonui Kiprotich.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for this opportunity to also contribute to the President’s Speech which was delivered well. I do support most of the issues which were raised in that speech, especially the one dealing with devolution where the President stated that Kshs1.7 trillion has already been devolved to the counties to help in development. Most of the key functions which we have as a nation are devolved. The functions of water, agriculture and health services are devolved. Therefore, funds must follow these functions. It is unfortunate that we keep talking about the Kshs1.7 trillion to the counties and yet we are not talking about the much that still remains at the national level. We are not talking about what that money has done or not done. I believe that we require to devolve at least 50 per cent of the national revenue to the counties so that we can have improvement in the standard of living amongst our people right in the villages. When you move around, you can easily see that roads have improved due to devolved funds. Health services have improved because of devolved funds but we are even unable to oversee, as a National Assembly, the funds which remain in the national Government. I believe it is because the resources are in plenty. Most of the resources are misused. I support some and not all of the issues in the Big Four Agenda. I strongly support the issue of universal health services. It should be critical in terms of getting support. The issue of food security and that of manufacturing to create employment should be supported too, but this animal called affordable housing programme is so hard to sell to my villagers. The people in my constituency are wondering. Sometimes when the President overemphasises it, people think he lives in his own world because they already have their houses and they are comfortable in their houses. The issue of houses is not a major one. The major issue to them is the roads which they are using and the health services they are supposed to access. People conduct fundraisers nearly every weekend. You will hear this family is dealing with a budget of Kshs200,000, the other one Kshs1 million and the other one Kshs8 million for somebody to go to India for medical attention. We should channel the funds which we intend to generate from the housing levy towards the universal health programme. That way, we can then bring to our counties the equipment which patients go for in India. There are vested interests in the housing agenda by those who came up with this policy. That is why we are overemphasising it and, in fact, providing Kshs100 billion per annum and yet we are doing very little with regard to providing health services. There are vested interests in those who came up with this policy. People came up with the idea of affordable housing programme without public participation. I have never heard of a situation where the only public participation done is in State House. That is very awkward. It gives an 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.

impression that there are many vested interests in the affordable housing programme. It is overemphasised but the thing is that it should not be done.

I support the fight against corruption. We need to do it so that we can encourage investment in this country. However, it should not be selective. There is this belief that there is a certain clique which sits and decides who to go for and who should not be touched. There is a strong belief that there is a clique somewhere which decides who will be targeted. The BBI is quite welcome and it has united the country. The President said that Kshs10billion was allocated to the BBI.

The next one is Member for Vihiga, Hon. Adagala Kahai.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this chance to also add my voice to the President’s Speech which was tabled here by our President His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta. I want to thank the President for his timely speech. It came at a time when this country needed him to speak on the state of the nation.

He talked on several issues concerning the Big Four Agenda that the Jubilee Government wants to meet. I fail to understand some issues when I hear Members from the Jubilee Party complaining about the handshake and the BBI. I fail to understand because it is some of us, for example, from Vihiga County who should be complaining about lack of development. There has been no development in Vihiga County for the last five years, including up to now. I am very sure that there is nothing tangible that has been done in Vihiga County in the past few years. When I see Members from the Jubilee Party complaining that nothing has been done in their areas, I fail to understand why and how.

I want to commend the President for his timely speech, especially on corruption. I saw a very funny animal with the mouth very wide open in the newspaper this morning. If that animal can be let loose to chew Kenyans, it will be very sad. As Members of Parliament who were elected by our people to come up with laws and also ensure development reaches every part of this country, it is very sad that we are not doing that. People have put trust in us. We have to support the President in his agenda. The President of this country assured Kenyans that he will stamp his authority when it comes to the fight against corruption. We would love to see it happen. We would love to see him supporting the organs responsible for investigations and the culprits being brought to book. I have seen Members here crying that some people from their community are being targeted. That one simply shows us that some people from certain communities are the ones who take the majority of senior jobs in this country. We want the job opportunities to be distributed equitably to all communities in this country. Through the BBI, the President should make sure that any job opportunity is distributed evenly in every region of this country, so that we do not have some people saying that their tribe is being sidelined.

If it is true that money has been siphoned out of this country, it can be brought back because our people are suffering. Food is not affordable. Our people are dying of hunger. One of the biggest agenda of the Jubilee Government is to make sure that there is enough food for all of us. Our people are dying. The price of unga has gone up. Most of our industries like Mumias Sugar Company closed down. For the President to achieve the manufacturing agenda, he should make sure most of the industries that have collapsed in the Republic of Kenya are revived right from Coast…

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Very well. Hon. Kihara Kimani, Member for Mathioya is the next one in the request list. 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.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to comment on the State of the Nation Address. At the outset, I support the President’s Speech fully. It was broad-based and touched largely on all the key areas that can drive our Kenyan economy. I was in particular encouraged by his comments on the Big Four Agenda which if well-coordinated, they will move this country to the next level. Affordable housing, universal healthcare, manufacturing and food security are all very pertinent in this country.

The tax that the Government wants to introduce to construct houses should be re- considered and withdrawn. This is an area that can be well looked after and managed and we can still attain the housing programme over a period of time by encouraging investors and giving them correct investment opportunities in that sector.

I was also encouraged by the President’s desire and commitment with regard to fighting corruption. We all need to support the President because corruption has taken this country backwards. The President said that the fight against corruption will not be done through witch- hunt or malice. We should all see to it that the agencies that are tasked with ensuring that the fight against corruption is won are well funded and that they are allowed to do their work unhindered. We need to hear less talk out there and see more action in the fight against corruption. The fight against corruption has received a lot of support. We will continue to support it.

The other key issue I picked from that particular day was the BBI. This has brought a lot of peace and harmony in our country. In the last one year, we are told that tourists have continued to come into the country in big numbers. We saw the problems we went through as a country. The handshake has brought peace and harmony in the country even in the House. We are now able to oversee the Government on various issues in a coordinated and in a more harmonious way.

This is something that needs to be supported. It will continue to bring development in the country. We have seen many companies coming into our country. Last week Wriggles opened a plant in Athi River area that will employ many of our youths. We have many other companies that are also coming in and others have shown interest. But this can only be sustained when we have stability in the country.

The other area we need to look at as a country is the tax regime to give investors confidence. I remember two years ago when the Cabinet Secretary, National Treasury, was introducing the Capital Gains Tax it brought a lot of problems to our stock market. When investors leave, getting them back into the country could take very long. We need to ensure we give stability in our tax regimes; how affairs are run in the country and how we can ensure that there is harmony.

I support fully. The other issue that is critical is to ensure that as politicians once we are elected, we give all our effort to development and not to the next cycle of who will become President in 2022. It is too early to start debating that and it will be starting politics. Let us support the President’s development agenda of the country so that we achieve what we promised Kenyans.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Member for Turkana South. Hon. Ekomwa Lomenen.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to comment on the State of the Nation Address by His Excellency the President. I support the Address because it was inspiring, as it gave us the real 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.

state of the nation in terms of security and talked about the Big Four Agenda the Jubilee Party promised.

The climax of the address was on fighting corruption. Corruption in Kenya has become worse than HIV/AIDS. We do not have many resources. Kenya suffers because of external debt as we do not go to the specific priorities. We are instead financing individuals’ pockets as Kenyans continue suffering and borrowing. Therefore, we all support the President in fighting corruption. But Kenyans must ask themselves who is really corrupt. When we critically analyse the situation, most people are suspected to be corrupt, but even those who are pointing fingers at those they perceive to be corrupt are the worst. It is only that they have not been discovered. We need to critically analyse our own character before we point our fingers at the rest. Let me give the analogy from the Bible where a woman was brought before Jesus and accused of sinning. Before Jesus did anything, he told her accusers that if they had never sinned then they could stone her. None of them did that. The same behaviour applies to corruption in this country. Before we point our fingers at any individual, we should look at ourselves to see whether we are candidates of corruption or victims.

I agree with what the President said in his address. We must take stern action against people who are corrupt. If one is suspected to be corrupt and you serve in a public office, it is advisable to step aside as investigations are done. That is just good character.

The other climax of the President's Address is the handshake. Kenyans are celebrating the handshake because after the elections there was a lot of noise in the country as people were disturbed and were in the streets. I thank the President for cooling down the tension of the people who were dissatisfied with the elections. My opinion as a Member of Parliament from Turkana is that for us to support the handshake, we must give some people priority. There are people we must give power for Kenya to be peaceful. These people are like Raila, Kalonzo among others. We must prioritise people who have been missing power. If they continue missing power, we will continue having noise. Those who are celebrating now in Jubilee are those people who were abusing members of the Jubilee Party. We have realised that in Jubilee they were crying for food and not power. Now that they have got food, they are the first ones saying that things are good. Kenyans are watching them. What are you crying for? Is it power or food? If you fight for a goat for your children and when you get it you give it to those who were not fighting for it, how will it look like?

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Hon. CNN.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me the opportunity. I will not go into details because the majority of the items I intended to mention have already been mentioned by Members.

I rise to support the President's Address because it is one of the most comprehensive and progressive speeches I have ever listened to without missing any detail. Our President mentioned the fight against corruption and it excited the whole House. Lucky enough, all the leaders were around including my party leader, Hon. Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka who has been at the forefront of fighting corruption. A corrupt free leader like him was here in the House. I would like to state that the President was very clear on how he wants to fight corruption. Let it not be lip service. He promised that he will prosecute members of the Executive who are responsible. So far, we have not seen much happening. I would like the President to be very clear on that issue of corruption.

I also followed the Big Four Agenda and one of the key issues that are being contested by every Kenyan is the housing levy. As Members of Parliament, let us not allow overtaxation of 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.

Kenyans. The 1.5 per cent housing levy is a lot. There is no way we are going to finance housing especially by the people working upcountry to finance people in urban centre to have a housing scheme. I urge the President to come up with a better method of raising revenue to fund the housing scheme. He can introduce the issue of levying cement and other construction materials but not overtaxing Kenyans.

Food security is a burning issue in our country. Majority of our counties, especially the 23 counties that were mentioned earlier, are suffering from food insecurity. I expect us to construct more dams and come up with irrigation schemes instead of relying on rainfed type of agriculture. That is why I am tasking the National Irrigation Board (NIB) to ensure that the resources for constructing water pans are evenly distributed across our country.

On manufacturing, why are we doing it if the President was not clear on the issue of infrastructure? You cannot have a successful manufacturing industry if there is no proper infrastructure in place. I would like to laud the former President Kibaki for what he did to our country. We are going to borrow Kshs378 million for construction of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from China. That money can do at least 20 kilometers of roads in each constituency instead of being invested in one SGR project of which we are not clear on the benefits that we will accrue from it.

I expected the President to deal with the issue of microfinance and macroeconomic variables like interest rates and inflation that are high at the moment. We have not heard much about them. I am urging Kenyans to avoid politics. Let us avoid politics and focus on the issues of census and referendum this year.

Withy those few remarks, I support the President’s Address. The issue of politics must be avoided and it must not divide Kenyans as we are seeing things happening at the moment. Thank you, Madam Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Very well, The Member for Funyula, I had interfered with your chip number 101. Hon Oundo Ojiambo, you have the Floor.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker…

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Hon. Charles Nguna, put your microphone off.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Hon. Member for Kitui South Constituency, it is noted. I heard him from far when he said “Madam Speaker Sir”. Hon. Member for Kitui South Constituency, what is out of order?

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for recognising my intervention. I have listened to my colleague and he spoke very well. However, I heard him say “Madam Speaker Sir”. We know that we have male Speakers – and we have a lot of respect for them – but he said “Madam Speaker Sir” and he repeated it. Surely, with the respect and pride that we have for women seated on the Speaker’s seat, it will be important for him to tell us if that escaped his thoughts or he feels better when it is a man occupying that seat.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Order! Hon. Charles Nguna, you had already finished making your contribution. What Hon. Nyamai is concerned with is how you have addressed the Chair. It is a common error. Many Members make fun of it 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.

by stating: “Madam Speaker Sir”. Since we are going for a leadership workshop, I am sure in our own Standing Orders we will advise on that accordingly. I am a madam and not a man and of course, I have a surname. What is it Hon. Charles Nguna? Please give him the microphone. He can explain to the House why that happened. I must also defend him because it is not him alone who has committed this error. Please, use the next microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I want to apologise for calling you, “Sir”. I have got immense respect for women in this country. I love you including my mother. So, I have got no issue with that. It was just a slip of the tongue. Therefore, I apologise and withdraw.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Let me hear from the lawyer, Hon, Wahome Muthoni, Member for Kandara constituency. Please, give her the microphone. You can use the next microphone.

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I placed an intervention because it was not clear what your ruling was on that point of order. I was going to join my sister, Hon Rachael to demand a withdrawal of that particular description. In fact, he has apologised and withdrawn but the HANSARD will reveal that he said: “Madam Speaker Sir”. There will be a problem there. This matter should not be taken lightly. Let him withdraw and apologise and recognise the correct gender. Thank you.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): The Member actually apologised. As I said, it is a common mistake. Hon. Charles Nguna, your reference to “Madam Speaker Sir” is the point of contention. I will tell the Legal Department to advise Members accordingly. It is true that women have come from far. We did not have women Members in the Speakers Panel. I confirm that I am a madam not a man. I am a woman. I am a proud lady from Kibwezi East Constituency. Hon. Member for Funyula, it was your turn.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for this opportunity to make a comment and support the Motion on the President’s Address as delivered in compliance with the relevant provisions of the law and the Constitution. First of all, as a nation, we have no choice but to embrace the BBI and the handshake. We must agree that it has brought some tranquility, peace and normalcy in this country. I know it was not an easy decision for either of the two parties, His Excellency the President and the Rt. Hon. Raila Odinga to forget the past and put the interests of Kenyans before their personal interests. It is important that all Kenyans walk the talk and at all times embrace peace, each other and accept that we belong to one undivided country. We have no room and opportunity to go elsewhere. We are here and we must work together. There has been noise all over of people who feel threatened when there is peace in the country. People who feel they have nothing to do when there is peace in the country. That is why I support the sentiments of the President and the Rt. Hon. Raila Amollo Odinga that, it is time to work and develop. There is no time to politic. There is time to politic and time to work. As it has been indicated in the Bible, there is time for everything. I, therefore, urge Members from the various political divide to appreciate and work together to build a one united nation called Kenya. 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.

As far as we are concerned, the BBI has given Parliament an opportunity to truly exercise its oversight role. As the Constitution has stated, the role of oversight rests with Parliament, the National Assembly and the Senate. If we fail to exercise our constitutional role, we should not blame anybody or the handshake because it was never going to be the responsibility of Hon. Raila Odinga to spend all his time doing other people’s work, yet you are mandated by the Constitution to oversee the national Government and the county government. Therefore, I want to urge my colleagues from whichever divide they are in, to do their duty and stop blaming other forces.

I also want to commend the President and the investigative agencies on the fight against corruption. We cannot develop this country unless we rein in on corruption and on blatant theft and looting of public funds. What has happened in the past five years is probably not corruption, it is beyond corruption. This is theft and looting. That is why I want to support the President and urge Kenyans and all my colleagues in this House to allow and strengthen the DCI, EACC and the DPP and give them the necessary support to allow them to lead the war on corruption. As we have always said, the due process of the law must be followed. Obviously, I agree with the President, vigilante justice should not apply in the fight against corruption. I, therefore, support the war on corruption and urge those of us who feel threatened by it to accept. If you are corrupt, mend your ways and live with the rest of Kenyans.

With regard to the Big Four Agenda, for us to take off, we must invest in manufacturing, more so, the textile industry through the cotton growing. I, therefore, urge the President and the relevant bodies to approve BT cotton so that we can increase production and meet the demand required by RIVATEX.

With those few remarks, I support.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): The Member for Mathare, your card has been there for long, but it is because you had walked out and came back in later.

Thank you very much Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I also want to add my voice on the President’s Speech. At the outset, I support the President’s Speech in line with the Constitution. This is a directive under Article 132 of the Constitution that, once in a year the President is required to address Parliament on three things which were well set in the last page of his Speech. He is expected to give talk on the efforts that have been made in terms of the national values under Article 10 and report on the progress made in fulfilling international obligations and thirdly the question of security. I will limit myself because of time to the first issue on principles and values under the Constitution.

Article 10 of the Constitution is very clear and I will pick out one of the key issues which is a pillar of governance and values and that is the question of inclusivity. The President was very eloquent, elaborate and in detail about the steps that he has taken in the last one year to try and leave one united and cohesive country. If there is one thing that will be the legacy of this President, it will be his ability to glue this country together, make everybody irrespective of their background, colour or whichever corner of this country they come from, feel included in Government. This is the reason for which I support the handshake. This handshake was an act of courage from His Excellency the President and Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga.

I want to speak briefly to the persons who have expressed aspersions supporting the President on one side and on the other side, week in, week out, in churches and in public forums deriding the issue of the handshake. I want to state from the very outset that if you support the President and you say you stand with the President, the President has not said that he has a 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.

problem with the handshake. You should support the President, both in deed and in words, at night and during the day time.

I want to address the group of people who have said that because we entered into this thing we call the handshake, the Opposition has died. This is a misreading of the Constitution. I tried to read through Article 95 as I was walking in and found out that it says that it is the principal role of Parliament to play oversight role. The Members of Parliament in plenary and through their committees such as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and all these forums, including the agencies of EACC and the DCI are organs established under the Constitution to carry out oversight. It is a misrepresentation of our Constitution and our laws to say that Opposition has died. I want to say that it will be a major disaster if this Parliament were to entertain what we have seen in the public domain where people say that they would like to whittle down the powers of the DPP and the DCI. I think the fight on corruption will be the second legacy which the President will leave after the handshake is anchored on having independent institutions undiluted by any quarters including Parliament.

I want to rest my case because of time and say, on the question of manufacturing the President would have come out clearly on how this Government intends to create jobs for the young people of this country. I hope that in the next state of the nation address, very clear guidelines and a path towards removing our youths from unemployment and insecurity will be addressed, otherwise, I support.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): The Member for Kitutu Masaba, Hon. John Mose.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to also add my voice in applauding the President for a speech that was well done. One of the first things that I want to appreciate His Excellency the President for is the recognition or reassurance that the state of the nation is strong and that we would continue as a country to thrive by embracing fairness, integrity and the rule of law which should be observed by each and every Kenyan. I want to also state that we are delighted that as a country, our men and women who have gone out to do key functions of this country have continued to excel. I am in particular delighted to note one of the men who have brought honour and glory to this country. Mr. Peter Tabichi, who was recognised as the best science teacher in the world comes from my constituency. I speak before this House to actually applaud Mr. Tabichi for bringing glory and honour to this country. More particularly, I appreciate the constituency where he comes from, Kitutu Masaba where he was originally born before he moved to Njoro. I want also to applaud the President on the way in which he articulated the Big Four Agenda that is, food security, manufacturing, universal healthcare and housing. I also want to join my colleagues who have spoken before me that the policy on housing is an issue that has not been sold out to Kenyans. When you mention housing, the people of Kitutu Masaba would want to understand how they would benefit from this particular project. I also want to say that the President articulated the issue of corruption. Indeed, all of us as Members of Parliament and as a country want to say that we abhor corruption and support the war on it. The only thing that we want to state is that the fight against corruption should be without any selection or victimisation. Why do I say this? I do not want to say that the fight against corruption is targeting a specific person, but the facts and the law should be very clear. This is the more reason I want to applaud the President for saying that corruption will be dealt with based on facts and the law. Nothing like vigilante justice, nothing like witch-hunting, nothing like mob justice, but the law should be allowed to take its course. And people must get 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.

their facts right so that at the end of the day we should not have the agencies that are dealing with investigations—the DCI, DPP, EACC—doing what we call shoddy investigations. At the end of the day when they appear before courts of law, they expect to get conviction. The courts that we have are supposed to be fair, independent and they are supposed to give verdicts that would actually support….

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Your time is over. Hon. Nakara Lodepe, the Member for Turkana Central.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for allowing me to also contribute to the President’s Address to the nation. First of all, our President met his obligation of reporting the progress of the nation to Parliament as per Article 132 of the Constitution. The President made us get assurance that this country is stable. In his opening remarks, he stated very clearly that the state of our nation is strong. When you hear such kind of words from the leader, you feel you are secure in your own country; you feel like you can stay in this country. Even developers and investors would feel secure on hearing such a comment from the President. The President assured the nation of his commitment to protect our borders and Kenyan lives. That assurance alone has made us to feel we are part and parcel of this country. But we have a challenge that we need the President to address: internal conflicts between counties in this country. The conflicts are killing more people than Al Shabaab, if you compare the numbers. If you look at the conflict between the Turkana and the Pokot, the one between the Marakwet and the Pokot and the conflicts between local counties—we need to see how we bring these people together. We need to co-exist as Kenyans. We need to do business: The Pokot to invest in Turkana and the Turkana to invest in Pokot because we are all Kenyans. So we need the President to come up with a solution of how to solve this problem internally. The President gave his commitment to devolution by saying that since April 2013 he has disbursed almost Kshs1.7 trillion to the counties. We have seen the changes in our counties, though not as we expected as per the money that we receive. We cannot solve generational problems within five or six years. So we need to give counties time. We need to embrace devolution so that we can see the benefits in future. The President’s commitment to devolution is encouraging. We want to see that devolution is growing and is doing well in terms of infrastructure. More than that, we expect the counties to major on areas that affect their own people like food production and healthcare. Those are the areas we expect devolution to address. The President stated that the state of the economy is strong. We can agree with him partially. Somehow he has tried. But somehow he has not done as we expected. We have no money in circulation. What will show that the economy is strong is when we see money circulating in the country and when people have purchasing power. The rural communities have no purchasing power. For us to know that the economy is strong, we must see people purchasing economically. Small businesses are closing down because the economy is bad. People have no money, so those small businesses are closing down. So we need the President to pull up his socks so that the economy of this country can grow. On the issue of the Big Four Agenda, I support it fully. But I was so surprised to hear the President saying the hides’ factory will be put up here in Nairobi. We expect tannery factory to be put up either in Isiolo or Turkana. We have Lomidat in Turkana west. We have a factory there. Why

an we not strengthen those local factories? Finally, on the issue of corruption I support the President 100 per cent. We need to take a step forward to curb corruption in this country. We want the institutions that have been 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.

empowered and we have funded to stop doing customer care work of pleasing and making headlines. We need them to deliver.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): The Member for Kandara and the chairperson of the 23 constituency-elected lady Members of Parliament, Hon. Wahome Muthoni.

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, thank you very much for this opportunity to contribute to the State of the Nation Address by His Excellency the President and record my voice and comments to the same. Many people have risen on this Floor and said they support, but I am unable to say I support wholesomely because there are many things that we need to say to give positive comments in terms of this speech. One of the things that I would like to say is that right now the country is supposed to be dealing with the Big Four Agenda from where the President sits. The Big Four Agenda is not going to work and somebody has got to say that. It is not possible, in the remaining three years of His Excellency’s term and given the constrained budget that we have in this country, to deal with four agenda items that are so broad as to look like not manageable. I have said it before and I want it to go on record on the Floor of this House that His Excellency the President should now reflect on the Big Four Agenda and reduce them to two. Why do I say that and which agendas do I think are a priority?

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, let us deal with food security because we have not had rains for long periods and people have been dying in parts of our country in this 21st Century. Therefore, food security supported by agricultural development should be the first priority in the President’s agenda.

Secondly, our people are still being locked in at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) and other hospitals within the country. They are dying because of lack of medicine. We do not have enough facilities and so access to affordable healthcare could be number two. In whichever priority, I remain on those two. If we can move the country on those two, we will have fed the nation and taken care of the health and security our people. A country which has its people dying, inflicted by diseases everywhere is an insecure country. It is a country that will not do production properly and it is a country that will remain poor. Let us forget about manufacturing and housing.

Today, if you go to the streets in my constituency or most parts of this country, Kenyans will tell you that they do not understand what is housing because they have houses where they live. Some of them do not have but they are renting. When you deduct money from people and it is a mandatory requirement and the housing itself is by lottery, what are you telling Kenyans? Why should I contribute to a house that I will have to do a lottery, yet I do not know whether I will ever get it? This does not make sense to most Kenyans. We are pushing it to Kenyans - they have clearly spelt out and said they do not want it. There are cases in court and we have to listen to what the courts are saying. So, in my view that agenda is not working.

The President also mentioned the BBI and the handshake. As long as the handshake and the BBI are by two people, His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta and Hon. Raila Odinga, it has failed to extend to other people. Some of the people and partners in the handshake have clearly said that it is for those two. Therefore, it brings exclusion of some people. We need to be clear as to why we should spend money for the BBI and the handshake if some Kenyans are already starting to feel excluded. An amount of Kshs10 billion should go to affordable healthcare.

Since the signals were not given on time, give her 30 more seconds. 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.

On a point of order.

Member for Muhoroni, you are out of order.

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, there is Kshs10 billion that has been mentioned. People died during the fight for Independence in this country yet nobody has compensated them. The Kshs10 billion should go to Turkana, Murang’a, Kibwezi and Coast for irrigation because the one million acre irrigation that we said we wanted to do as Jubilee Government has not yet been done. As we are building bridges, a large group of people that supported the Jubilee Government is feeling excluded. So, let those who are joining Jubilee through the handshake not feel like they are making any progress because they came in and other people withdrew. There is a problem in the design of the BBI and the handshake. It has no legal framework. We need a legal framework and that is what I wanted to say because you cannot move a subject that has no legal support.

Very well. Let us have the Hon. Member for Kamukunji, Hon. Abdi Yussuf.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I rise to support the President’s State of the Nation Address which was delivered to a joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament.

I would particularly like to highlight the importance of the President’s Speech given that it is a constitutional requirement under Article 132 of the Constitution which spells out our national values and the principles of governance in our country. Many people may not be aware of the existence of this particular Article which is based on patriotism, national unity, devolution of power, the rule of law and democracy, human dignity, equity, social justice, inclusiveness, equality, human rights, non-discrimination and protection of the marginalised. This is a beautiful Article in our Constitution.

I welcome the President’s well crafted, well delivered speech based mostly on his slogan and theme of “no turning back”. He underpinned the fact that he was not going to turn back on two critical areas. One is the BBI and I welcome it because building bridges to create coherence, inclusivity, peace and stability of our country is a very noble move that no Kenyan would disagree with.

The second point was the issue of corruption. Corruption is a disease. Corruption kills. It takes money from people. It takes resources from our children, our health and our education and, therefore, it is a cancer that we must fight will all our strength. I like the fact that the President has not only identified it as a national problem but he is also ready using his powers and abilities to fight it. Kenya suffers in two ways when it comes to corruption. The first is our image. Everywhere you go in the world we have a bad name because there is a perception out there that we are a very corrupt country. When Kenya is mentioned, corruption is the next word that comes in. Second is the taking of essential resources for our national development particularly for a community that is heavily taxed that wants to know how that money is being spent. It is painful every day to read that resources have been wasted and that there are leakages and looting of public resources. So, corruption is eating into the fibre of our nation and society. Corruption poses security risk and threats to our stability.

So, although the President said that he did not want any vigilante justice and that due process and the adage that you are innocent until proven guilty works, I will call on the President to use his moral authority in order to build his legacy and to leave a better country than he found 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.

it. I think that is where many Kenyans were expecting the President to strike the whip and to make sure that there is no tolerance whatsoever for any kind of corruption in our society.

I also thank the President, very quickly, on his support for young people in our country and to put money into Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). A large number of our youth need those jobs and I welcome it.

Finally, I also welcome the President’s push to ensure that our sons and daughters whom we have lost to evil people are returned back and they become part and parcel of our country. We need to give them a second chance to be good citizens. That is the best way to defeat violent extremism and terrorism.

I thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Very well. Let us have the Hon. Member for Kapenguria, Hon. Moroto.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this chance to add my voice. In the Bible, there is a verse which says that faith without action is dead. This was just a routine. Some of us have been here for long since the time of President Kibaki and now President Uhuru. This is a just a trend that every year the President must come and give a prepared speech and after that, it gathers dust and nothing comes out of it. As you can see, currently, there are many extrajudicial killings by the police and no action is taken. Nobody has been arrested, but people have lost lives. In fact, there is a problem in a place called Chepchoina in Endebess Constituency, Trans Nzoia County. The General Service Unit (GSU) officers are driving people out of their land to pave way for some guys who I do not know where they have come from. They are claiming that they had leased the land where Kenyans are living and have settled. The Government, through the police, is protecting those people. Who is supposed to enjoy? It is the Kenyans who voted for this Government 100 per cent and put it in place especially from that area, but they are suffering. This was just an essay competition where you can write something good to please people’s ears, but when it comes to action, nothing happens. In fact, I was startled when the current President took over with his team including the Deputy President. They used to go round meeting people, but it is like something different is coming up. I want to ask Kenyans to pray because they are very prayerful and their God listens to them. People are talking about the handshake and building bridges. Bridges for what? In any country, there must be a government elected by the people and an alternative government in the Opposition. When we just come and sing in this House the chorus of building bridges, bridges for what? This was somebody’s ghost and it is now high time the Government started working. Every Government has something to tell the people that they will do once they are elected. Therefore, we should not give a chance to others. This is what I think. I can come here and say something has happened. In fact, some of us have been going round this country. There are places where some projects had stalled, but so much money has been going to areas where it was not allocated. Because of this, other people are suffering. I want to talk about security and my colleague has said what is happening in Pokot and Turkana. There are no security personnel in the area. People are on their own while in some places, there are many security personnel who are doing nothing. That is why I am saying some consideration should be put in place so that each Kenyan can enjoy the fruits of this republic. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Jessica Mbalu): Very well, Member for Kapenguria. Let us have the Member for Chepalungu. 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.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to add my voice to the State of the National Address by the President. The speech was balanced apart from some few sections which I strongly believe need improvement. Corruption dominated his speech and when you look at what is happening in the country, the topic across the board, whether in towns, cities or villages, is all about corruption. We have taken the whole nation to one corner called corruption while on the other hand we have things to deliver like development and the Big Four Agenda. These are very critical part of the President’s legacy when his time to retire comes. Agriculture is one sector which the President mentioned and I also want to speak about it. The Head of State noted that agriculture is the largest employer in the economy and 60 per cent of Kenyans are employed in this sector. Some of the things which will improve agriculture in this country are being fought every day. Provision of water pans and dams is very critical. With dams, we will be able to feed our animals and irrigate our land. Corruption derails the development agenda, which will improve the living standards of Kenyans, and we find it difficult to speak about the Big Four Agenda. There was something about Kshs10 billion on the Building Bridges Initiative. Initially when I heard about the Kshs10 billion allocation for BBI, I thought it was about improving our road network and maybe building bridges in our areas. Later on, I was told it was about the BBI that came on board through the handshake. I felt so ashamed that a handshake can go with Kshs10 billion in this country. It is so bad that we can allocate this amount for a handshake, while the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC), which has a legal framework and enacted by an Act of Parliament, is poorly funded and completely lacks resources. The handshake which came on board the other day is given Kshs10 billion and I feel that, as leaders, we need to look at what Kenyans require from us. I want to make a statement regarding my constituency on security because it is part of this country and it is important to have security even where we come from. Within a period of one year, in Makimeny Location in Chepalungu Constituency, which I represent, seven people have been killed. The investigative officers are so adamant to place charges against the perpetrators or the serial killers. We have lost lives in our small village called Makimeny. The person who murdered his wife presented himself to the police station and later on we were told there was no evidence yet we lost a woman and a mother of six children. I want to request the Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Matiang’i, to assist us in getting this serial killer who is messing up with the lives of the people of Makimeny. Otherwise, people might choose to take the law into their own hands. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Oyoo Onyango.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this consideration to add my voice to this much cherished Presidential Speech, namely, the State of the Nation Address. Most of the grounds I would have wanted to cover have 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.

been properly covered by my colleagues although I am a bit astounded that I have seen most of my colleagues, more so those on the other side, trying to make the President’s Speech look as if it is part of the much publicised handshake. The President’s Speech was very good because it touched on the various basic needs of this country. He talked about the four pillars of his agenda and addressed them properly. If the four pillars are supported by this House and by the country, they will go a long way in alleviating the suffering of many Kenyans. Kenyans are on a collision course with themselves. We are sitting on a dynamite called unemployment. Young boys and girls who have gone to school and attained degrees are helpless and hopeless because they cannot get jobs. If somebody is talking about creating manufacturing industries with a view of getting the young people absorbed in employment and a sensible Member of Parliament wants to wake up several years after Independence and oppose that, that is wrong. The President touched on many issues, but if there is one issue that has elicited the attention of many Members, it is the word “corruption”. I do not know if we should now change our Constitution and make corruption a legal practice in this country. Corruption has eaten into the fabric of this country such that our boys cannot get employed because the factories where they can work, which were started by their founding fathers have been brought down. President Jomo Kenyatta created the factories in order to mitigate against urban migration and to empower locals. He made efforts to put factories in almost every district or sub-county, but unscrupulous managers made sure that these factories were brought down through wanton destruction and pilferage. More than 50 years after Independence, people want us to say that we should still be onlookers, cheerleaders or people who are stealing public funds. We know them. People know what I own today. If tomorrow I start flying choppers and I have several vehicles in my compound, I am buying hotels and businesses from foreigners just like that, people will start wondering aloud where I am getting the money. We start suspecting. We want the investigative agencies to be invigorated, so that they can investigate these people to know the source of their wealth. Then some leaders who have been elected by people to look after their interests, wake up in their houses and talk about “selective amnesia.” How do you know that the people are doing selective investigations until the cases have been taken to court and the court has proved that the people are not guilty? I think we need to give the investigative agencies time and support so that we can know who is corrupt and who is not. We need to support the President because this corruption is like cancer. It will eat into everybody in this country. We are not happy about it. It must come to an end. In this case, we will support His Excellency the President. I conclude by saying that the handshake is a long-term project of the President. It is going to bring order and sense back to this country. It should not worry anybody. I am wondering whether God told somebody that he must lead this country. We had elections and we know who was elected. We are going to have elections in 2022. After the elections, we expect the president and his government to steer the country into a favourable economic path. The President is doing his best. We only want to say that those who purport to support the President, more so those in the Jubilee Party, must follow the President. If I was the President, I would ask them: “What irks you if Jubilee gets some supporters from the other side to support you?” What is itching that is being felt by some Jubilee supporters, more so, those who are in congregations on Sundays called tangatanga ? When they hear of the handshake and the BBI, they think that somebody is coming to…

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Members, we have to stick to what is parliamentary. I do not know what tangatanga would be. It is un-parliamentary. 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.

So, we stick to what is parliamentary in our deliberations. Next is the Member for Githunguri, Hon. Kago.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to also add my voice on the President’s Speech during the State of the Nation Address. To begin with, the President recognised our great men and women of various disciplines in this nation who have kept the Kenyan flag flying high at international events and bringing glory to our nation. The President recognised Mwalimu Peter Tabichi, who was voted as the best teacher in the whole world. That is a clear indication that Kenya can even do better than what we are today. On agriculture, the President noted that it is the largest employer in the economy accounting to over 60 per cent of the total employment. When we do the Budget, we give agriculture too little. For us to feel the President’s Big Four Agenda, one being food, security and nutrition for all, we need to allocate enough money to agriculture. According to the Maputo Declaration, agriculture should be allocated not less than 10 per cent. However, in the last Budget, we only allocated 2 per cent, which is far below. Still on agriculture, the President said that the Ministry has constructed 4,400 water pans, which will place over 6,000 acres under irrigation and we really appreciate. If you are doing irrigation and we are not supporting the farmer with whatever he or she has harvested, post- harvest loses will be big and this country cannot achieve food security. We need to support the farmer to avoid post-harvest loses. On the coffee subsector, the President said that there will be rehabilitation of over 500 pulping stations in the 31 coffee growing counties. The problem that coffee farmers face is not rehabilitation of pulping stations, it is market. Since time immemorial, we have seen our coffee farmers being misused by cartels and brokers. Unless we help the farmers to sell their coffee directly to the consumer, even if we give them subsidies and rehabilitate coffee factories, we will not do much to our farmers. On the issue of milk and eggs, I did not hear the President give a lot of attention to our dairy and poultry farmers. The two agricultural products that we produce in excess in this country are eggs and milk. We have seen milk coming all the way from our neighbouring countries which has killed our dairy industry. I expected the President to talk about the measure that we will put in place in order to help our farmers not to close down their farming businesses. Kenya is importing eggs all the way from China.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Okay, conclude in one minute.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. We have seen eggs being imported all the way from China. Kenya produces over 1.2 billion eggs, but the consumption of eggs in Kenya is less than 1 billion per year. Therefore, we are supposed to export and not import eggs. It is the same case with dairy farmers. I expected the President to talk about those issues. I still hope that the Cabinet Secretaries for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries and Trade, Industry and Cooperatives will help the farmers to avoid closing down their businesses.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Let us have the Member for Kasipul Kabondo, Hon. Obara.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. It is Kabondo Kasipul, if you can make that correction.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): It is Kabondo Kasipul. 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.

It was previously Kasipul Kabondo. Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I support the President’s Speech. I thank him for giving Kenyans the assurance that the economy is strong and is expected to grow at 6.3 per cent upon execution of the Big Four Agenda. This is apart from the affordable housing agenda which does not appear to be achievable. About 500,000 low cost houses in the next three years does not look like a realistic target. The other areas namely, the universal health coverage, food security and manufacturing are achievable and within the control of the Government if we realign our strategies. On the housing agenda, we could still realign our strategies and focus on other areas where we can achieve, particularly on food security. We can see what is happening where we have sad situations of Kenyans dying of hunger and yet there seems to be plenty in other areas. On the universal health coverage, this should have been done as soon as yesterday. We are on the right track and I believe it will be achieved. On manufacturing, we have invested a lot in technical training institutes (TTIs) across the country. It is not impossible for us to manufacture spare parts or even assemble vehicles if we focused on this area and put the TTIs to use. My constituency is focusing on agricultural engineering and the equipment there is amazing. If we put it to proper use, which we will, then our children will be able to sell some of these products such as pangas, slashers and all the simple things. We will manufacture them within the constituencies. Secondly, I am happy that the President acknowledged that he has confidence in devolution and that the Government will give full support to devolution. Without fear of contradiction, we have seen most counties transformed through improved local economies and service delivery that has come closer to the people. It is also sad that in a few others, nothing much can be seen out of the many billions that have gone to those counties through devolution. Thirdly, he made a statement that he will not back down on his fight on corruption. Let us be honest with ourselves. The kind of mind-boggling figures we have seen of money that has been lost through corruption is unprecedented. I support his stand that there is no turning back particularly now when he is not looking at a second term. He is in the best position, more than anybody else in this country, to fight corruption and address the historical injustices. Those who still think that the Kshs10 billion that has been put into the handshake is nothing or is too much, I want to tell them to try insecurity and war. When there is no peace, you will pay anything in this world to have the peace that we are currently enjoying. I can see that my time is up. I support the President’s Speech.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Very well put. Let us have the Member for Kiambaa, Hon. Paul Koinange.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I wish to add my voice in support of His Excellency the President’s Speech. I was particularly happy when His Excellency the President reported that our nation’s state of security is strong and that the nation continued strengthening partnerships as far as security matters are concerned. We have reformed the police up to the ward level. This is not like it was in the past. A sub-county has a police station in each ward which makes the devolved ward very effective for the security of the people of Kenya. Some of our nation’s security threats such as terrorism and drug trafficking are global. They need a concerted effort from several states to combat them. Our President has been at the forefront in getting other nations and neighbouring countries to support us in this war against drug trafficking and contraband goods. We now have a new security organ, the Kenya Coast 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.

Guard Service, which is fully operational. This service will man our territorial waters thereby greatly curtailing activities of drug traffickers, human trafficking and contraband goods. It will also fight the people who have been looting the blue economy in our country. We now have border security police specifically assigned to guard our international borders. This will greatly curb security threats especially from organised gangs and also our neighbouring countries besides significantly reducing the number of illegal immigrants coming into the country. It will also reduce the number of illicit goods imported into our country and illegal trading between our people and those from other countries. The Nyumba Kumi initiative that His Excellency the President touched on is an idea whose time has come. If this idea is embraced by all of us, it will work wonderfully to enhance security and integration of our people. I urge all our leaders - those elected and those appointed – and all the civilians, civil servants, chiefs and assistant chiefs to embrace the Nyumba Kumi Initiative. I believe the Nyumba Kumi initiative will fight organised crime greatly. It will also nab those individuals who are recruiting our young men and women into organised criminal gangs, including the Al Shabaab.

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, His Excellency the President also talked about rehabilitating and re-integrating back into the society those who engaged in terrorism previously, but have reformed. It is very important to help these people. This is a very good and timely move which should be extended to those who were members of locally organised crime gangs such as

, Sabaot Land Defence Forces, the 42 brothers, Chinkororo, the Mombasa Republican Gang, among others who have reformed. We must see how these young people can be helped and regain their humanity and socio-economic livelihoods in the country. We must see how we can start issuing them with police clearance or certificate of good conduct.

If you allow me to conclude, it took a lot of courage by our third President, His Excellency Mwai Kibaki to lift the ban that had been placed on the Mau Mau movement for many years.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): I will give you a minute, Hon. Koinange.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. The lifting of this ban enabled the representatives of the Mau Mau freedom fighters to try and seek justice for atrocities meted on them by the colonial Government. Similarly, some of our youths get recruited into crime when they are literally children, but when they grow up, they reform. These are people we should try to help and bring back to the society.

Our country needs to seriously come up with ways to protect our data. We cannot afford to continue losing billions of shillings to people who hack our systems like it is happening in our banks. We must protect our people’s data.

As I conclude, in order for us to achieve the prosperity that His Excellency the President wishes for this country, we simply need to be transparent and honest in order to move on.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Kaunya Oku, Member for Teso North.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I would like to make my remarks on one aspect that His Excellency the President highlighted in the speech, namely, national values. Most of the discussions surrounding the issue of corruption can be addressed well through the national values which the President emphasised. He reported the state of the implementation of our national values. 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.

Our national values are in Article 10 of the Constitution. They emphasise on patriotism. It is one aspect that is enshrined in our Constitution and the national anthem. It will be wrong if we, as leaders, do not ensure that these national values are practised. When making the Budget, it is important for us to provide funding to ensure that some of these things are in place. At Independence and a few years after, there was a lot of emphasis on teaching about the national values, even in schools. The National Anthem was taught in schools. Ethics were incorporated within our curriculum. To ensure that we bring up these national values, we must start from primary and secondary education levels upwards. We cannot start at a higher level without inculcating these values at a younger age. The President emphasised the importance of this.

Parliament should provide what is necessary in operationalising the national values. We, as Parliament, passed certain laws like the National Cohesion and Integration Act, which is helping us. The President emphasised on the BBI, which is enshrined in our Constitution. We also passed some of the laws and provided the necessary resources that can operationalise the national values in departments and institutions that we created. The President indicated the state of progress which is quite satisfactory in terms of implementation of national values. However, we need to anchor and support that with resources to ensure that these values start from educational institutions at the primary and basic level to the top, so that every Kenyan can appreciate them. The issue of corruption will be solved by simply implementing the national values fully.

I support, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Member for North Horr, Ganya Chachu.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to support the President’s State of the Nation Address in Parliament. The speech was very comprehensive because it touched on many critical issues which are facing our nation. His commitment to unite Kenyans of diverse backgrounds and political divides among others was very evident because he kept on emphasising the need for us to have the BBI.

The Head of State’s commitment to fight corruption was evident. He said that he will fight it using our Constitution and all the other laws that we have which govern our nation. It is the right thing to do because we are a nation which is governed by the rule of law. In the past, people were mentioned on the Floor of this House and many of them were finally freed by the court. It is good because this time round, he had a different strategy of fighting corruption. Those Kenyans are innocent until proven guilty by a court of law.

I was encouraged and inspired by our President’s commitment to devolution, although there are teething problems. Some people are saying that we devolved corruption to the grassroots, but I am of a very different opinion. As a ranking Member of this House and somebody who has served in this House even before devolution and during this phase when there is devolution, I can tell you for sure that for the first time, we have hospitals running in our counties, sub-counties and constituencies. We should improve roads in our constituencies to be all weather roads, so that our products can get to the market, and our farmers can access markets in many parts of our country. If this is done, we will be able to intervene in instances of insecurity since we will be having good roads. We will manage the crisis at hand.

We even have bursary from our governors where our best students in colleges and high schools are supported and the poorest of the poor are getting a chance to go to school. To me this is very encouraging. Even the burden on the NG-CDF is not as it used to be because we share 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.

with the governors and other institutions in our counties. We have a harmonised approach instead of duplicating efforts. In the long run, most of our students will receive fairly good education.

In many of the frontier counties of the ASAL region, where I hail from, abattoirs are being constructed in places like Wajir, Mandera, Isiolo and Marsabit. Once they are completed, we will get fair value for our animals in terms of pricing. We will even be able to access markets not only in Kenya, but hopefully in other parts of the world especially in the Middle East such as Dubai and other countries within that region.

I also appreciate the President’s support for universal healthcare. Health is the most important aspect of anybody’s life. However, I have two issues with the President's Address. The President did not mention anything about drought yet millions of Kenyans are suffering. We wanted to see serious intervention from the Government on the issue of drought. Pastoralists are losing their livelihoods in the form of cattle, goats and now camels have started dying. Water is a critical issue, but hardly anything is happening. I would have wished the President addressed that issue.

Putting up a tannery in Kariakor is totally misplaced. It should be established where we have raw materials like in the ASAL counties where we have enough skins.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Chachu, you look hesitant to sit down. I will add you a minute to wrap up.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. The last issue that I want to wrap up on is the placement of the tannery. When the Kenya Meat Commission (KMC) was established in Nairobi, it became one of the most non-profitable and chaotic State corporation because it was misplaced. If it had been placed in ASAL counties where we have enough livestock, I am sure the KMC would not be a dead institution today. Equally, the same thing will happen to the tannery. It is misplaced. We need to re-think about it and establish it in one of the ASAL counties such as Mandera or Marsabit which has enough livestock to ensure the investment does not go to total waste.

I support the President's Address.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Let us hear the Member for Kaiti, Hon. Kimilu Joshua.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to add my voice to the debate on the President's State of the Nation Address. I rise here to support the Address. The President spoke strongly against corruption. Everybody in the country now knows that corruption is real. We have had enough and the President spoke strongly against it. But we want to see action and not mentioning people. We are heading in a very dangerous direction on corruption. We cannot afford to lose our resources through corruption.

The President also talked about electricity. In the rural areas like Kaiti Constituency, little has been done about electricity especially on the Last Mile Connectivity. I was there yesterday and I was not pleased with the way they are doing it. I know if you are doing maximisation, those who are within 600-metre radius of a transformer should be connected with electricity. I was not happy to see some people get electricity while others are left out. These are people we represent and they cry to us. I want the Cabinet Secretary for Energy to do something about that.

The President also mentioned infrastructure. We know the 100 per cent transition from primary to secondary school is a good Government idea. As Members of Parliament, we have the mandate to deal with education and security when it comes to the NG-CDF. What we have is 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.

not enough. I urge all Members to support me in increasing the NG-CDF. If we increased it, we will be in a position to do equal distribution to all the schools and improve their infrastructure.

Affordable housing is one of the Big Four Agenda, but this time we have to be sensitive to Kenyans. We cannot say that we are constructing cheaper houses when we are making life very difficult for Kenyans. We have to be sensitive and know that Kenyans are struggling with the current economy.

The President also mentioned security. We are having a challenge in security especially in my constituency. I built a very good police station. I spent over Kshs18 million to construct a police station in Ilima Ward. After doing all that, it was gazette, but up to date, we have no personnel. For the last six months, ten people have been killed due to insecurity in that area. These are some of the issues I expect the Government to take action on.

Agriculture is the mainstay in our country. My input or advice is that if the Government can agree and make sure that every constituency has one big dam for irrigation, it will assist on food security. This is very important. If we go in that direction, we will be in a position to solve the problem of food insecurity.

On drought, I was expecting that before schools re-open, every school in the ASAL areas would get food.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): The Member for Baringo Central, Hon. Joshua Kandie, you have the Floor.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I rise to support the State of the Nation Address by His Excellency the President on two areas, namely, the unity and the handshake. As far as I know, there is nowhere in this world where you can do anything without peace. I am urging all Kenyans to support the President on this. Since we have this unity, I hope investors will start investing in Kenya. We are urging investors from all over the world to come and invest in this country because we have peace. Secondly, I am supporting the President on the war against corruption. I am saying without fear of contradiction that there is nowhere in this world where a country can succeed with corruption. So, corruption must be fought by everybody. I am urging Members of Parliament to support the President on this war against corruption. In addition, we need to see action. We need to see people being prosecuted and being put in jail so that those who are planning to steal are deterred. I support the President on the two items. Firstly, I support the handshake. Before the handshake, I used to tell my colleagues here in Parliament that the best option is to ensure that we get along with the Opposition so that our country can make progress. Some people laughed at me at that time, but now it has become a reality. I am very proud because any Kenyan can move anywhere. The other day, I was in Kisumu and saw people doing businesses. I went to Mombasa and there were many tourists. This is what we want. Those are my few remarks and all Kenyans must support the President on these two areas.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Member for Dagoretti, Hon. Simba Arati.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. Much has been said by the many speakers on the Floor of this House. I rise to support the President’s Address for the first time. Last time when the President came to Parliament, we were all over with all manner of accusations on corruption that he spoke about on the Floor of this House. I am happy the 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.

President spoke passionately about corruption. We have seen corruption trying to fight back through the lieutenants of corruption. Some of them sit in this House. Yesterday, when I heard a number of our colleagues talking, they were bitter accusing civil servants who were innocent and could not defend themselves on the Floor of the House. When my security was withdrawn sometime back, we did not cry foul as they are doing. Kibicho has to do more work. He should not withdraw security because others have been given more security than other Members of Parliament. We are all equal. The only thing is that we want to ask the Government to be vigilant. The President has said that if we get one thief out there, be it a governor or the Deputy President, we should frog match them to the police station. Very soon in this City, we will do it to the thieves who have a lot of money in bunkers, some in their rural homes and in Nairobi. We know where they have put the money. Kibicho should be collecting a good number of police officers to give us security when we will go to their houses. There is nothing like vigilante. They are taking advantage because the President talked against the vigilante system of adjudicating justice. That is the best way to work against the thieves who have no shame stealing from public coffers. The same group which is opposed to the President’s Address attacked the DCI when he told them they had stolen.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Arati, did you say that vigilante justice is the best way?

It is the best way to deal with the thieves that the President is dealing with in this House.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): You cannot say that and you are a law maker!

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, remember the President himself repeatedly said…

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Are you in support of vigilantes? Hon. Arati, you know you are a law maker and a leader. So, you cannot purport to say that vigilante systems are the ones that are supposed to work in a lawful country.

All right. Can I put it right, that the President said repeatedly that we can arrest these crooks who steal public money and frog match them to where they are supposed to be? But we support the DCI, the DPP and Mr. Kibicho; the one they are condemning. Some of those who have benefited from proceeds of stealing are the worst and noisiest in opposing the President’s Speech in other forums. I want to put it clear that there is no time that you can outshine your master or the neck has never exceeded the head. Let people cool down; things are shaping up for the purpose of making our country a better place to live. Otherwise, I support the President’s Address.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Member for Kasarani, Hon. Mercy Gakuya, you have the Floor.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for the opportunity to support the State of the Nation Address by the President. It was quite unifying and it touched on various aspects starting with economic and social aspects. I will start by pointing out the Big Four Agenda. If we focus on the Big Four Agenda, by the end of this term, we will realise that dream. If we look at housing, which has brought in some issues, we will find that some officials are doing what they can so that mwananchi is educated about it. 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.

In the constituency I represent, the dream of everybody is to acquire a home. Every time one gets a good job or does business, the focus is always to own a home. If people can be educated enough, it is a good thing and we need to take advantage of it. We should not allow it to flop. On manufacturing, I am quite excited because in most of the constituencies, we have Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions including mine. If we continue to embrace this and tell our youths that it is not only the white collar job which pays, you will be surprised that within no time, our economy will grow. If you go back to our constituency and in most offices, you will find the youths are always asking what is next for them. They say that there are roads, but they have no jobs. Therefore, it is high time we ensured that our youths are properly skilled. If the skills are well imparted, you will be surprised that a lot will be done. On the handshake, over the years, we have enjoyed peace in this country. Peace is not the absence of war and people always mistake this. The absence of war does not mean peace. It is high time we knew what peace is all about. It starts from within and when it gets without, there is peace everywhere. Those who propagate fights should know that they do not only affect them. Fights affect the planner and even those who fight. So, it is high time we knew that Kenya is one. We are not going anywhere. We are not in transition. We are all over and we must make sure that we embrace peace. So, I support the handshake. On the issue of food security, without food, we cannot do much. Our neighbouring countries are doing well in farming. Unfortunately, in Kenya, the rains had delayed, but we thank God because there is rain in the country. We should continue with prayers so that we are not affected by floods. It is high time we invented new ideas so that we can have not only food security, but also food reserve for 5, 10 or 20 years like it happens in the United States of America and Japan. It is quite unfortunate that if we have floods or drought, we cannot sustain ourselves for more than one week. So, let us take advantage of this. The very last one is on the issue of corruption. Corruption is a demon. I will not get another good word for it. There is goodwill with the leadership, and so, we can have a sober country. Let us ensure that if one is caught on the wrong side, they step down and move on because there could be another opportunity on the side once one is cleared.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): I will give you one minute to wrap up the Member for Kasarani.

Thank you very much. On corruption, we keep on saying that we are being fought or our communities are being fought. Let us believe in the value system of the society. Let us have a value-based and principled society where ethics matter. The moment we find that what is right is right and what is correct is correct, Kenya will be a great nation to live in. If we do not do the right thing at the right time and we justify corruption and try to hide, it will surprise us that there will be nothing left for the next generation. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I support.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): It is well noted, Hon. Gakuya. There being no other request for contribution, I call up on the Mover to reply.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. From the outset, I want to go on the HANSARD that close to 119 Members have contributed to the President’s Address and at the same time to the documents that the President brought. This is with regard to the state of national security on his Government’s fulfilment of international obligations and how the Government is dealing with the matter of national values as enshrined 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.

under Article 10 of the Constitution. So, nearly a third of the House has contributed. I went through the HANSARD of yesterday morning, evening and this afternoon and I have been watching from my office. I want to say that the mood that I set yesterday, you know politicians go astray, Members kept to that mandate. Why do I say so? Nobody spoke about the challenge the President gave to the Legislature in terms of making sure that they support the Government in the Big Four Agenda. He thanked Parliament, more so the National Assembly, for making sure that all the laws relevant to the implementation of the Big Four Agenda have been passed and the only remaining ones are under mediation. So far, we have finished, as the National Assembly and we are meeting with our colleagues next week. The President also applauded the House for making sure that we passed 22 Bills in the first and second sessions. Thirdly, and I said this, and I want to repeat it, the President… I spoke to him this morning in China and I told him that he is the only one who is sincere about bringing the nation together. He is the only one because the rest are not sincere. The former Prime Minister, the Deputy President, Kalonzo Musyoka, Musalia Mudavadi and all of us politicians are not sincere. I am not going to withdraw that statement. The only person who wants the nation to unite and to have one voice is the President. Why do I say so? Our friends on the other side, who because of that divisive election we decided to bring our people together outside politics, want to do selective handshake. You want to greet the President, but you do not want to greet his Deputy. If you come to our side, there are those who are saying that they cannot greet Raila Odinga because of history. I really want to urge that the weekend funerals and meetings, if there is anything that will burn this great country, it will be the utterances of politicians. I want to ask my colleagues to watch our tongues. The tongue is a small part of the body, but it can destroy a nation. The tongue is a small part of the body, but it can bring ethnic animosity. Let us watch what we say, where we say it and how we put it. On the war against corruption, successive Governments have tried to deal with it. During the late Mzee Kenyatta, there was the Chepkute Coffee Scandal. If you come to Mzee Moi, there was the Goldenberg Scandal, and if you come to Mzee Kibaki’s Government, there was the Anglo Leasing Scandal. If you come to the Jubilee administration, there is the National Youth Service and many other scandals. Corruption must be fought by all Kenyans and it must be a behaviour change. What did the President say? He said that the Constitution and this House have created independent institutions to deal with corruption and they are answerable only to the National Assembly and the Senate. The Controller of Budget, the Auditor-General, the EACC, the DPP, the DCI, the Inspector General of Police and Parliament in its oversight role, are all independent institutions. In fact, it is very dishonest for Members of Parliament to shout at funerals about corruption in the Government when you are the ones who appropriate money and you are the ones who are supposed to watch over the money. Let us call a spade a spade. As a Member of Parliament, a Member of the Public Investments Committee, the Public Accounts Committee, the Budget and Appropriations Committee and Administration and National Security Committee, you have a duty to protect every penny that you appropriate. So, when you go to a funeral and talk about fighting corruption, you have a constitutional mandate to fight it. Every three months, the DPP and the EACC submit their reports to this House showing the cases they have investigated, prosecuted and the cases they have taken to court. The same happens with the Judiciary. The state of the Judiciary petition is brought to this House. The 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.

Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs, which oversees these institutions, must put them to task. So, nobody should feel that they want to protect the office of the DPP. The Constitution has protected it as well as the offices of the EACC and the DCI. Nobody can purport to protect them. You cannot protect them in a funeral or a rally in your village. The Constitution has protected them. They have security of tenure. They are only answerable to Parliament. Give us a break. The President said you cannot fight the war on corruption through vigilante justice. You go to a rally and say that Hon. Duale or Hon. Chachu Ganya has stolen their NG-CDF money. If you have evidence that somebody is involved in misappropriation of funds, take a walk to the EACC at Integrity Centre.

The President is on record saying that if you think he has a corruption case, you can take a walk to Karura Forest. So, the problem in the war against corruption is with us as politicians. One group calls itself kitaeleweka, another one calls itself tangatanga and another one calls itself ODM. We are in Government. You have no business in the war against corruption. After the DPP approves the case, he will take it to the Judiciary, which will ensure that there is fair justice. So, do not lecture us. The DPP comes from my county, but he does not need my protection. The Constitution protects him. The media cannot run the corruption agenda in this country. They said that Kshs9 billion was lost in the NYS. Today, the people facing the NYS cases are cumulatively being charged for Kshs67 million. Where is the other Kshs8.3 billion? The other day I asked a senior prosecutor what happened to the other Kshs8.3 billion and he told me to ask the Daily Nation and The Standard newspapers. I even asked the Auditor-General, my good friend, Ouko, one day if Kshs9 billion has been stolen and why he did not raise the red flag. I asked him how he can be in office and he told me: “Hon. Leader of the Majority Party, look at me in the eyes. If Kshs9 billion is stolen under my watch, I will resign tomorrow”.

So, the President came and said that we should not use vigilante justice to brand him. Why do you want to brand Hon. Arati on corruption and he is not? If you have evidence, produce it. Just because I am richer than you or more religious and I can distribute money to build mosques, you want to say that my money is from corrupt deals? No! The President said he is not even going to sack his Cabinet Secretaries until they are charged in court. There is an Act that this House passed called the Fair Administrative Justice Act.

There is competition to defend President Uhuru Kenyatta and claim that he is good. I wish some people could look at the clips they made. Hon. Arati should just refresh his memory on what he said about the President. We have no problem. We have even said something about their leaders, but we have agreed to have the nation come together despite what I said about Hon. Raila and Hon Arati.

On a point of order

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): What is it, Hon. Simba Arati? The Leader of the Majority Party is replying to the conclusion of the Motion and so, you must substantiate your point of order.

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, with utmost respect to my colleague, the Leader of the Majority Party, when he walked in, he found that I was at the doorstep, but that is not a justification for him to tell me to jog my memory to see what I used to say about the President. When I started, I alluded to it very well. We know that we had not given the President enough time last time when he was here. We kept whistling. Now that there is a handshake and, indeed, we need to grow as a people and as a nation, they 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.

must also embrace it. Let us not castigate the whole effort the President is putting into place and good leaders to develop the country. So, to my brother, Hon. Duale, you are out of order!

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): I am trying to look for anything that is out of order in his speech.

You are out of order! The Temporary Deputy Speaker is on the Chair and he is even telling me I am out of order. Anyway, I will forgive him. I do not want to engage him. He is a good friend of mine.

However, even among our own constituencies between me and that of Hon. Ganya, there might be conflicts. This unity the President brought should go to all the parties. You cannot tell me that you will come and bring a handshake and you want to destroy the internal bridge of a party called “Jubilee”. In the unity of a nation, a nation is composed of blocks, counties, communities and political parties. I said it yesterday and I am repeating. I am saying it also on behalf of the President who is my party leader, that there is no way, for those who are dreaming, that you can greet the President and avoid greeting the Deputy President. Your handshake is fake, vague and meaningless. It has no place in Kenya. We want to tell everybody that when politics come, the men and women who work and engage in development will have their day.

With those many remarks, today I am happy from the on goings in Wajir West. Tonight the Jubilee family will have a new Member of Parliament from the region I come from. There were only two ODM Members of Parliament. We have taken one and they have only one; the only remaining ODM Member of Parliament in Wajir North. So, the whole of North Eastern is now red except one. This is because of the handshake. The people of Wajir West said that they want Jubilee and Uhuru Kenyatta. They also said that they are tired of rhetoric.

So, tonight, I will not sleep, but from the indication of our party agents, the small party called “KANU”, which had five Members out of 349 will see the most humiliating defeat ever in Wajir West.

I beg to reply.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): That is just a pre-emption Hon. Leader of the Majority Party and a prayer, which is good.

That marks the end of the debate on the President’s Address. We shall defer putting of the Question on the same until such a time that we will have it on the Order Paper.

(Hon. (Ms.) Soipan Tuya): Hon. Members, the time being 6.38 p.m., this House stands adjourned until Tuesday, 30th April 2019, at 2.30 p.m.

The House rose at 6.39 p.m.

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