Hon. Senators, I have a Petition by Mr. Joseph Tipanko ole Karia on the Financial Mismanagement and Irregularities in Procurement by the County Government of Narok. The Petition states as follows:- “I, the undersigned, Joseph Tipanko ole Karia, a citizen of the Republic of Kenya and a resident of Narok County wish to- Draw the attention of the Senate to the following:- (1) THAT, the Mara Conservancy (herein referred to as “the Conservancy”) was exclusively mandated to manage the Mara Triangle by an agreement dated 12th April, 2005, between the Conservancy and the now defunct County Council of Trans-Mara; (2) THAT, the Conservancy has been acting in serious violation of its obligations under Clause 8.3(a) and (b), Clause 8.4 and Clause 8.5 of the said agreement; (3) THAT, the County Government of Narok and the Conservancy together with its collecting agent, Kenya Airports Parking Services Limited Company (KAPS) have been and continue to engage in unabated suspect financial transactions which already have and continue to cost the County Government millions of shillings; (4) THAT, the Conservancy has deliberately failed to remit and/or account for the “Council Portion” of the revenue collected from the Mara Triangle as outlined under Clause 8.3(b) since the commencement date of the agreement; (5) THAT, the Conservancy has deliberately failed to account for the “Running Costs” as provided for under Clause 8.3(a) of the agreement; (6) THAT, the Conservancy has been misleading the public and government auditors in the pretence of transparency and accountability by publishing false information in its official website www.maratriangle.org regarding the amounts of The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Petition you have read from Narok County has come at the right time. I would like to request you to ask the relevant committee to move fast on this issue because from what we have read and saw a few days ago on the happenings in Narok County, if the Senate will not move fast, then we will be setting ourselves up for a bigger or major pr
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I want to thank you for finding that this Petition is admissible to this House. I say this because while in our proceedings there has been attempts by various governors to give the impression that the Senate can only, as per Article 96(3) oversight funds allocated to the counties by the national Government and not revenue realized on the ground. That you have found this admissible, it is very nice because I believe that revenue raised on the ground must be accounted for and by virtue of Article 96(1) which says that the Senate must defend the interests of the counties and their governments. It is, indeed, important that this money be looked into. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I do not know which committee you will refer this matter to. However, if it happens to come to the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Budget, where I sit or the County Public Accounts and Investments Committee, where I also sit, we still have a problem because it will require that we talk to the governor, financial officer and other players there. You know the court case that is impending. Again, it will tie our hands and we will find it very difficult to get down to the bottom of this matter. Maybe you could guide us on that.
Sen. Wetangula, is it on the same issue?
No, it is a different matter.
Yes, Sen. (Dr.) Machage.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, the importance of tourism in the economy of Kenya cannot be underscored. The Mara Conservancy actually neighbours my county, Migori County. Interference with the same also affects the economy of Migori County. The management of the transition in many counties is wanting. Actually, many resources that were hitherto collected by many counties are yet to be fully accounted for by many of the current governors in this country. Therefore, this is just one example of what is likely to happen in many counties in the process of accounting for what had been a normal collection by the previous local governments. Therefore, the Petition that has been raised by the people of Narok County is important and an eye opener to the whole country on the truth about mismanagement and corruption of public resources. I support this.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to also raise concerns similar to the ones raised by the distinguished Senator for Kakamega County. We already have issues with the revenues collected by county governments during the transition period. As I speak, there are investigations by the CID that are going on in Kitui County about monies collected and not accounted for. Of more concern is that this House, through the committee chaired by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale has attempted to summon governors to explain some of these problems. My concern is that what we have The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, in support of what my fellow Senators have said, I just want to suggest to my senior, Sen. Musila that under Article 125 of the Constitution, the Senate has got powers to call the attendance of witnesses, summon for evidence, call for production of documents and issue any commission to any person. Therefore, the fact that there is a gag order against governors does not stop the Senate from calling for evidence from any other person. The Senate should not look as if we have been rendered impotent by virtue of that court order.
Hon. Senators, the Petition shall be committed to the Standing Committee on Finance, Commerce and Budget pursuant to Standing Order No.227. If you look at that Standing Order, Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, you will recall it is referring to a Standing Committee. That is why we cannot put it to your Committee although there are issues that are quite applicable in your case as well. However, they will come to you in the normal way through the report of the Auditor-General. For now, Petitions are committed to Standing Committees. The relevant one is the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Budget. On the other matters that Senators raised, especially yourself and Sen. Musila, I want to make it abundantly very clear that as far as I know, there is nothing stopping the Senate from summoning governors. In fact, what exists is that in the Kerugoya case, when the first attempt of trying to gag this House was brought before Judge Mumbi in Nairobi, she referred the matter to the Chief Justice, the President of the Supreme Court to establish a three-judge bench. The matter was referred to a three-judge bench in Kerugoya. The Kerugoya High Court, of a three-judge bench, where we were not even represented gave the following orders. It says in part two as follows:- “The Senate can summon governors, Members of the county executive committees and other officers.” That is a judicial determination. What the Council of Governors has done is try to go to the Court of Appeal to try to review that. Those are processes that are ongoing. As far as I am concerned, and I think I had occasion to tell you last time, nobody can injunct Parliament. Parliament must proceed. We will do our part, keep summoning them. We will keep a file of those summons and somebody else, including the voters, will know who obeys the law and who does not.
Next Order! The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table of the House, today, Wednesday, 26th November, 2014. The report of the Standing Committee on Land and Natural Resources on the public hearing held on 29th November, 2014 on the Natural Resources Benefits Sharing Bill 2014.
I thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for allowing me to seek the following Statement from the Chairperson of the Committee of Education regarding universities funding in Kenya as espoused in the Universities Act, 2012. The Statement should:- (1) Elaborate on the total amount of funds the Government has distributed to the Universities in the Financial Years 2013/2014 and 2014/2015, through the Ministry of Education. (2) The number of students in each and every university that has benefitted from this Ministry’s funding for the Financial Years 2013/2014 and 2014/2015. (3) The formula used in sharing out the funds to the universities as brought out in answer to number (1) above. (4) Give reasons as to why despite the President assenting to the Universities Act, 2012 in 2013, the concerned Cabinet Secretary for Education has not established and gazetted the Universities Funding Board of Trustees as set out in Section 54 of the University Act. (5) Table a list of persons who have been executing the Board of Trustees functions since 2013 of managing the Universities Fund, advising the Cabinet Secretary in matters of University Education on funding, on developing the criteria for allocation of the funds to the universities as set out in Section 54(4) (a) to (g) and (5) of the Universities Act. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir.
Is the Chairperson of the Committee on Education here? Vice Chairperson? Is there any other Member of the Committee here? Sen. Yusuf Haji, being the Chairperson of the all powerful Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations, could you defend the Chairperson of the Education Committee? At least, convey the message to him.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I will convey the message to him. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Sen. Haji, you will tell the Chairperson that we expect a report next Wednesday. That will be in seven days’ time.
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.
What is it Sen. Hassan Omar?
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I also sought a Statement about three to four weeks ago, on the state of insecurity in the Coast region.
Order! We need to dispose of the matter on the Statement sought by Sen. Wetangula then----
I thought---
Sen. Hassan, it helps to be alert and to know your neighbourhood.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I would like to appeal to my friend, Sen. Wetangula, to give him two weeks. Anyway, I will pass the message.
Yes, Sen. Hassan Omar. STATE OF INSECURITY IN LAMU AND OTHER PARTS OF THE COAST REGION
Mr. Speaker, Sir, about four weeks ago, immediately after the Kapedo attack, I sought a Statement on the state of insecurity in the Coast region and in particular the curfew in Lamu County. I was promised that the answer would come the following week. However, the following week, the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations indicated that he would personally summon some of these duty bearers in the event that Statement was not availed to him. So, the coming Thursday, Sen. GG Kariuki, made an undertaking that, that Statement will be presented before this House today. So, I seek that response.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, Sen. Hassan Omar is very correct. He demanded a Statement about three weeks ago. In the first week, I assigned my deputy, Sen. Fatuma, to follow up since I was not in Nairobi. She did everything possible and there has not been any response. For the last two weeks, as late as this afternoon, I have been following up those statements asked by Sen. Hassan and the gracious lady Senator who was here. We have no response. Either these people are not capable of giving any response, because they do not know what they are doing, do not know what to say or there is a deliberate attempt to refuse to respond to questions asked by this House. I was going to summon these people, but I was told by the Clerk Assistant, Joseph Mwangi, that there was an order given by the Senate Director of Committees that in the view of the cases pending in court, that we cannot summon these people. I do not know how it is related. I even questioned, what relation will the court case have with summoning of Cabinet Secretaries? So, my hands are tied.
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir. That is a very grave matter, for a member of staff to advise the Committee that it cannot summon a Cabinet Secretary. The summoning of a Cabinet Secretary is a The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I really want to sympathize with the Chairperson of the Committee. However, of greater importance is that, on the ground, in matters security, the Government is not there or it has refused to deliver. Now that, that failure on the ground is now extending to this House whereby the Government does not want to be questioned on issues of security, it simply means that, if you do not stand firm, the Government will go scot free because already such a frustration is being experienced in the “Lower House.” You remember how the Speaker and the Senate Majority Leader were summoned to State House to go and be prevailed upon to go slow on summoning Cabinet Secretaries to Committees. We must defend this Republic because when we fail, you will see the deaths of Kapedo, Mandera, Lamu and everywhere. As an opposition in this House, even if somebody will desert you and you are firm, we will stand with you. I know our colleagues here on matters of security are going to stand with you.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, the statement made by the Chairman is, indeed, a very a very serious matter. I agree with my colleagues on this. Security is one of the key challenges today that we have in this country. If the Cabinet Secretary and those who are responsible have now advised that they are not willing or able to come to respond to Parliament, which is responsible for oversight in the functions of the Executive, it is important that this House communicates through a resolution or through your office, on this grave matter. The decision by a department of Government and the person heading it that are not willing to respond is, indeed, a very serious matter that will impact negatively and adversely on the performance of the Government and also on the lives of the people of this country. It is important that we communicate this decision through your office to the Head of the State, so that this matter is addressed.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, coming from Sen. Haji, who is an extremely respected elder not only in this Senate, but in this society, generally, that statement demonstrates the frustration and an attempt to forestall what is broadly captured as representative democracy. When we ask these questions, we ask them on behalf of the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Constitution of Kenya gives Parliament three broad responsibilities. The first responsibility is legislation; where we make laws for the country and laws that have to be abided to by every citizen and institution. The second responsibility is representation, where we represent our counties and our colleagues in the “Lower House” represent their constituencies. The third broad responsibility is oversight; a very important responsibility. It is because of the third responsibility of oversight that Article 125 was put in our Constitution. This is the power to call for evidence. For those who may not be very familiar with this, Article 125 (1) of the Constitution, says that either House of Parliament and any of its Committees, like the one that Sen. Yusuf Haji chairs, has the power to summon any person, including Cabinet Secretaries and Governors to appear before it for the purpose of giving evidence or providing information. Article 125 (2) says:- “For the purposes of clause (1), a House of Parliament and any of its committees has the same powers as the High Court.” I have never heard of any people, anywhere, who do not honour the summons of a high court. This Constitution gives us the same powers as the High Court of this country. I appreciate that you have led us in following the rule of law and adhering to the Constitution to the letter. We appreciate that fact and support you fully. This is a constitution that was overwhelmingly passed by Kenyans in the Referendum and we stand behind you. Assert yourself and ensure that the Constitution is adhered to. As long as we are following the rule of law, at the end of the day, history will judge us correctly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir.
Hon. Senators, I have heard you. I was equally shocked by what I heard from my Chairman, in terms of an officer telling him that Cabinet Secretaries are barred from appearing before Committees. It is unbelievable. I want to believe that, that must be a very junior officer who does not know his job. My office will facilitate the Chairman to ensure that all the Cabinet Secretaries that he need to appear before him will appear before him as and when needed, because that is the law. This is a democracy. If somebody out there thinks otherwise, then he is The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir. In my seven or eight years’ career in the human rights fraternity, I handled extremely delicate work. During that time, I never ever spoke about any threats to my person, safety or security. I have never said that I feel scared or under threat. I have never even given any particular cognizance to some of the hate emails or messages that I have constantly received. But in every situation in life, I think that there is a red line. Mr. Speaker, Sir, over the last few days, my attention was brought to some bloggers who are well known to many of us and in the world of social media, where they uttered comments that not only have raised my concern, but the concerns of many of my friends and even adversaries. I think that I must not take these comments very lightly. Subsequently, based on these comments, which I have shared in a letter that I have addressed to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), I thought that it is necessary – as a matter of even personal responsibility – to bring it to the attention of this Senate. This is part of the excesses in the social media and there is need for us to curb crimes and disallow the perpetuation of such heinous utterances. Mr. Speaker, Sir, on the social media, my team brought to my attention that on 22nd November, 2014, a Mugo Wairimu, posted on his or her Facebook account and also
account
Mr. Speaker, Sir, indeed, Sen. Hassan has written a letter. It was copied to you, my colleague Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki and me. This goes much further than the complaint the distinguished Senator is raising. If you reflect on the history of this country, you will find that when J.M. Kariuki stood on the Floor of the House and said his life was in danger, within a month he was not there. The distinguished Senator for Laikipia, who has been here much longer than anybody else, can bear me witness. When Tony Ndilinge stood in the National Assembly and said his life was in danger, within two weeks, he was not there. We can cite many others. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, the issues raised by Sen. Hassan are very serious. Members of Parliament are elected to represent people and because of democratic ideals of representative democracy, they give views that are often in conflict with views which The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, what we are hearing from Sen. Hassan is very serious. The direction we are taking is not good at all. We know that we have freedom of speech, but I am sure nobody has the freedom to incite others to take other people’s lives. Sen. Hassan has always been biased towards human rights. As a representative of his people, whenever anything happens, he has a right to defend them. He is always fair minded in the sense that; do what you are doing, but respect other people’s rights. We are having cases where Kenyans can incite others and if this kind of incitement is not nipped in the bud, then nothing will stop Kenyans from killing each other along religious lines. I am surprised about what Sen. Billow has said; that even the highest offices in the country are making such statements. Therefore, the earlier an action is taken, the better. Things just start like this. Somebody is testing waters; then tomorrow he or she might decide to act. That will be the beginning of killings which we cannot stop. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Hon. Senators, the list is growing longer so we will have to reduce time to a maximum of two minutes. Therefore, make sure you have collected your thoughts properly.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I wish to, first of all, condemn in the strongest terms possible, those who would wish to abuse our fellow Senator.
Order! You are talking in your capacity as the Chairman, therefore, I will give you four minutes.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, thank you very much. Much obliged. There are three things we are faced with here. The first one has to do with the security of Sen. Hassan. I agree that we must not take it lightly. We must not assume that these people are just speaking from the darkness. There must be a reason they are saying so, and there are or they, probably, have masters or crazy people who can react tomorrow in a manner that can harm Sen. Hassan. Therefore, among the things I believe that were asked from you, I would also urge you to speak to the security apparatus to ensure that they give Sen. Hassan sufficient security; that no harm comes to him. The second thing has to do with hatred and hate speech. There are all sorts of abuse of freedom of speech in this country. When freedom of speech is such that it interferes with the freedom of others, it begins to be oppression of speech and not freedom of speech. Therefore, it is important for the DPP who is in charge of prosecution to take action. They should take action in such a manner that they must not only act, but they must also be seen by us, as a Senate and by the public as a whole, to be acting. The third thing is the misuse of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), especially social media. Yesterday, Sen. Sijeny shared with me a posting in social media of a person who was stripping a woman in a matatu and touching her private parts. That clip had been posted in the social media. My Committee on Information, Communication Technology has two Bills that we are discussing. We have the Access to Information Bill and the Data Protection Bill. We intend to amend the existing laws to ensure that abuse of the internet becomes part of what can be addressed in terms of prosecution. People are hiding under the guise of the fact that if you abuse somebody verbally, it is different from if you abuse somebody through the internet. It is the same thing. In fact, verbal abuse is sometimes less than social media abuse. Therefore, we must take action to ensure that crime in ICT is seen as crime and not excused because it is social media. I want to agree that we must have a civilized society where we must agree to disagree. Agreeing to disagree does not mean that we become enemies or abuse each other. It is a hallmark of a civilized society. Therefore, I urge, like the rest of my The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Sen. (Dr.) Kwalwale, you have two minutes.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, when I look at the names of the people who are posting these kinds of hate speeches against Sen. Hassan, I wish I had time, it appears like there is mobilization and more scaring mobilization bordering on ethnic lines if I was to read the names. However, as we urge you to take strong action, we should also ask the DPP to look beyond these threats in connection with what is happening in Mombasa. We know that Sen. Hassan and the Women representative for Nyeri County, hon. Nyokabi, are going through a smear campaign that they fixed certain suspects at the International Criminal Court (ICC). Probably, this could be creating an opportunity for those who want to eliminate Sen. Hassan because of the assumed fixation of certain people. They want to eliminate them and blame the war against terror. Those people are prepared to see dead MPs and Senators. Mr. Speaker, Sir, when the Senate Minority Leader, Sen. Wetangula, collapsed of exhaustion when we were at the Aga Khan hospital in Kisumu, hon. Moses Kuria posted that, “Sen. Wetangula, rest in eternal peace.” These are people with murderous intentions. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I condemn.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, as I add my voice to this social media misuse, in some countries, social media is well used and politicians can actually use it in campaigns unlike in our country. In my own opinion, I think we are misusing the democracy we have. We are misusing democracy and leaders in this country have been facing the most painful part of this misuse. We are abused because people assume that we do not go to social media. I have actually faced the insult of social media. Mr. Speaker, Sir, just to correct my colleague, Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, this has nothing to do with Jubilee Government or CORD. We all get insulted on social media. The electorate thinks that this is the only way they can communicate their complaints and what they think they know about us. If there is anything this House can do about control of social media or defining the exact use of social media, then this is the time we can do it because social media is going on to even promote violence and insecurity of this country.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, about four years back, in the exercise of trying to interpret the constitutional draft of the Sessional Paper No.3 of August 2008, on the National Land Policy, I was bundled and thrown into jail and labeled, “hate speech monger.” This was done without even having printed my speech for Kenyans to validate what I was trying to educate them on. What is happening now is evident to me that the law that was used by the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) is discriminative against small mortals or lesser mortals of this country. It is used impartially on certain communities in this country and never used to every Kenyan equally. Sen. Hassan was there clapping his hands when I was in that situation. Now, he is in the same boat.
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Time is up, Senator!
Mr. Speaker, Sir, give me two more minutes because I am a Member of the Speaker’s Panel.
Order, Senator! Yes, you are there when I am absent. For now, I am present. Therefore, you are disqualified.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I just want to make two comments. One, I want to use this opportunity to clear Sen. Hassan as an impartial leader in this country because he uses every opportunity to unite this country. Whenever he speaks, he says he represents a cosmopolitan county where there are Muslims and Christians mixed. Last week when we had a seminar in Mombasa, he had to cut short his presence in our midst to go and preside over a Christian function. Therefore, it is very unfortunate that some people paint him as a religious or ethnic chauvinist. We need to clarify that as people who know him better and have worked with him. Secondly, I want to stress the statement given by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale. There has been a low tone condemnation of the Kenya National Human Rights Commissioners (KNHRC) during the time of the post election violence that they have fixed people. I do not think we should take the statement by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale lightly because why should people in print media say that somebody should be shot dead and not warned like the other one who said “kill your own”? That one actually is a vague one. This one is about somebody saying a specific person be shot dead. That must be taken very seriously. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I condemn.
Bw. Spika, lizungumzwalo hapa ni tishio la maisha ya mmoja kati ya sisi hapa Maseneta. Mambo haya kutokana na takwimu tunazozipata ni kwamba kila wakati Serikali huonywa kwamba kuna kitu fulani kitatokea na hakuna lifanywalo. Habari zilielezwa kuhusu maafa ya Kapedo, Mandera na kwingineko. Ikaja
hapa tukawa wakali na kukashifu maafa haya. Swali langu ni hili: Tunangoja mpaka amalizwe ndio tuje na Hoja ya kusema tuna huzuni, Sen. Hassan amekufa?
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Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. This is a very sad thing. The incidences of insecurity are getting out of hand. Apart from harassing women and innocent young girls in the streets, matatus and everywhere else, they are now invading our Chambers and selecting one of us. Today, it is Sen. Hassan Omar. Tomorrow, it will be you or someone else. You wonder where we are coming from, where we are headed and what we, as a nation, want. Mr. Speaker, Sir, elections are at the corner. How will we be treated? Will we leave our houses to go and campaign? Can we work or sit here comfortably and feel or believe that our children are safe? I concur with my colleagues. This is the time we must take action. We, as Kenya Women Parliamentarians (KEWOPA), have condemned this. We are ready and willing to go an extra mile. Not only to protest and amend the laws, but also to impeach, if not in the usual way, frog march and remove people from offices. I concur and say that something has to be done.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I want to join my colleagues in condemning the two gentlemen who made the very unfortunate remarks in Facebook regarding Sen. Hassan Omar in the strongest terms possible. This is unfortunate. This is a time when this country needs unity more than ever. Fighting terror needs a concerted effort that will unite this country more than divide it. I do not think that it is right for anyone to cast aspersions on Sen. Hassan or any other Member of this House for that matter. Leaders have every right to comment on any issue that touches on the lives of Kenyans. Let me put it this way: Recently, the Attorney-General talked about the regulations of churches and mosques, which I personally spoke about. Places of worship are different from places of charity and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). Therefore, leaders have every right to proactively and very constructively help the Government to look for ideal solutions. There is a challenge in this country. We cannot fight terrorism without engaging everyone. This is worrying all of us, whether we are from the north or the south, irrespective of our party affiliations or religious denominations. We need to work together as a team and ensure that we help our people and nation. I condemn these people. They must be taken to court, not tomorrow but yesterday. The DPP must act.
(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): Mr. Speaker, Sir, I want to take this opportunity to express my disgust that 50 years after Independence, we are struggling with very basic things, including national cohesion, unity, national identity and tolerance. I condemn all those who have threatened Sen. Hassan Omar. I request that if it is possible, the Speaker of the Senate should write to the DPP on behalf of all Senators of Kenya. He should ask for thorough investigations. I suggest that the Speaker should write another letter to the Head of the CID and to the Inspector-General of Police so that Sen. Hassan can get adequate police protection as a leader in this country. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I have only three things to say. From a reading of this letter, I recall that we have a famous saying that goes: “He who represents himself has a fool for a client.” Sen. Hassan Omar is a good lawyer. However, in making this request, he was very polite. I will request you to use your official letterhead to protect this Senate by stating clearly that no investigations should be conducted on Mugo wa Wairimu and Willy Omosa because an offence has already been disclosed in these postings. Therefore, these people should be charged in court immediately. I say so, and support Sen. Kindiki. I want to bring to the attention of this House the fact that my late father was threatened the same way. A few months later, he died mysteriously. Therefore, this is a very serious issue. These people have suggested that Sen. Hassan should be killed. We do not need investigations, but prosecutions immediately.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I stand as an angry Kenyan to say that what has been going on is very disturbing, indeed. I want to say, here and now that the responsibility should start from us. We should condemn such acts. When you look at what is in the social media, you wonder why we are watching and enjoying what is happening. Why could they not condemn it and report it accordingly? We watched it, laughed and that was it. However, this is a very sad situation. If these were my own grandchildren undergoing this, I would have felt very sad. So, we cannot allow our country to continue allowing such things to happen. Security has to start from us. We cannot, all the time, be talking about insecurity. Let security start from you and me, so that we stop these acts, once and for all. Social media is good when it is not abused. However, when it is abused, then we have to find laws to stop it. It is young girls and young women of Kenya who are suffering. Today, a programme has been launched for 16 days to sensitize people on violence against women. Probably, people have forgotten that the lives we are all carrying are God’s gifts which we need to nurture and respect. We need to respect one another. We are the ones to stop what is happening in the society. It is our unity and the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Asante, Bw. Spika, kwa kunipa nafasi hii. Jambo la kwanza nashtumu vikali hao watu wawili kwa kutoa taarifa kama hii kwenye mtandao. Mhe. Hassan, Seneta wa Mombasa ni Seneta ambaye huongea kulingana na fikra zake. Hayuko hapa kuongea ili kumpendeza mtu yeyote. Ni mtu ambaye anaongea vile anavyofikiria na hivyo ndivyo Katiba yetu inavyosema; ya kwamba kuna uhuru wa mtu kusema vile anavyotaka. Jambo la kusikitisha ni kwamba hivi sasa ametishiwa maisha yake. Waswahili wanasema; “Lisemwalo lipo na kama halipo laja.” Kwa hivyo, tishio hili kama halipo hivi sasa, Sen. Hassan amelitubua na ametuambia. Kwa hivyo, ni muhimu kwamba Bunge la Seneti, kupitia kwako Bw. Spika lichukue hatua ya kutetea maisha ya ndugu yangu Sen. Hassan ili lisemwalo likiwa halipo na laja, tuweze kulikinga lisiweze kumfikia. Nashtumu sana kitendo hiki.
Asante, Bw. Spika; asante kwa kunipa nafasi hii nizungumze pia kuhusu usalama katika nchi yetu. Nazungumzia mambo ambayo yametendeka siku chache zilizopita. Jambo la kwanza ni yale maafa yaliyotokea Mandera. Pili, ni kitendo cha kuwavua akina mama na wasichana wetu nguo. Tuna hofu sana kama akina mama na wananchi wa Kenya kwa mambo na vitendo vinavyoendelea hapa nchini. Tumeketi hapa kama Maseneta na sisi ni viongozi tunaowaakilisha wananchi pale mashinani. Tuko na Kamati ya Usalama na Maswala ya Kigeni ambayo tumesikia Mwenyekiti akilalamika kuwa mawaidha yake hayatiliwi maanani. Wakati mambo yake hayatiliwi maanani na ilhali ni mwakilishi wetu katika Bunge hili kwa masuala ya usalama, inatushtua sisi kama viongozi. Ninampa pole zangu mwenzetu Sen. Hassan Omar kwa kutishiwa maisha yake. Kama viongozi, Serikali inafaa kuchukua hatua mwafaka. Bw. Spika, tunaposimama hapa tuna mioyo mizito kwa sababu mambo yanayofanyika hapa nchini si mambao ya kawaida. Tuliona jana picha ambayo msichana moja alivuliwa nguo zote. Ingawa wanaowavua akina dada nguo wanasema kwamba wasichana wanavaa nguo fupi, hata unashangaa; kama suruali pia ni fupi. Nguo za juu zinavuliwa hadi chupi. Kwani chupi pia inatikiwa iwe ndefu? Unashangaa ni kwa nini watu wanaendelea kutenda kitendo kama hicho. Sisi kama akina mama na viongozi tunashtumu vikali vitendo hivi. Wasichana wetu jana na leo wanahofia kutoka nyumbani, hawajaenda shule kwa sababu wanahofia maisha yao.
Seneta, muda wako umekwisha!
Bw. Spika, ninashtumu kwa ukali sana.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I also condemn the action of the people who are tweeting and targeting the life of Sen. Hassan. Senators in this House represent counties and their interests. When we have insecurity in counties, Senators have to come out and speak. This is because if we do not speak out for our people, then we shall be failing in our mandate. Cyber crime is a criminal act. If an SMS which is sent out to a person carries a bad message, it is punishable by law, where a person can be sentenced or fined. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I thank you for giving me this time. I join my fellow Senators in condemning this issue. Indeed, our colleague, Sen. Hassan is under threat. His life is under attack because if he is being attacked through social media then something somewhere is cooking. We should not just assume it. The security of Sen. Hassan should be beefed up. What worries me is the way our security apparatus or institutions handle cases. When you report that you are under threat, it is taken lightly. Many of us have been threatened and nothing has happened. We must speak loudly that Sen. Hassan is under attack and everybody should know. Something should be done. For some of us, nowadays people ask why we are quiet. We have received threats that; umeingia kwa Bunge na moto; go slow. We are speaking the reality. I have reported these. Up to now, no action has been taken. The way it is going, we cannot take it for granted. Something somewhere is amiss and I wonder what has happened in this country. Kenyans have taken the law in their hands and they do things the way they want. I condemn.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for the opportunity to also join my colleagues, the Hon. Senators in condemning the threat very strongly. Nobody has a right to threaten somebody else and talk about somebody else’s life. No matter what one person says or does because there are channels if one wants to put a case against somebody, one can always go to court. To threaten another life is wrong and criminal in its nature. I wonder why we need another law for cyber crime. Any crime is a crime. The laws we have should be sufficient to charge anybody in court. I know Sen. Hassan very well and I think he knows that. I took him back to university when I was an Assistant Minister for Education when he had been thrown out. He also worked closely with me and told me when he wanted to join the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. I know his passion for defending other people, especially those he feels are downtrodden. Sometimes some people might see that he has gone out of the way, but that is no reason to threaten anyone. From what I know, I do not think Sen. Hassan has an evil mind. I think the people charged with legal action; the prosecutor should take action against those people who have threatened the life of another individual because apparently they are known. We are elected or nominated to this House to speak for our people. You cannot start threatening a Senator or a Member of Parliament in order to The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me this opportunity so that I may also join my colleagues in solidarity. Before I comment on this issue, I want to clear something that the Senate Majority Leader mentioned. There was no heckling at Uhuru Park. What happened was that people were seriously mourning one of their beloved who has departed. When they mourn, can you stop them from mourning in a manner that they want to do it? This is a man who was loved by a majority---
Order, Sen. Ong’era! I was there myself, you cannot misrepresent facts; we all saw them. I will seriously say from where I am sitting that if there is any one time that this country and the two Houses united, it was to mourn the departed comrade Sen. Kajwang. I think nobody should take that away from the leadership.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I want to congratulate you in the way you have led the Senate in going to mourn the late Sen. Kajwang and also my colleagues in the Jubilee Coalition. They reminded us that we are a united front as Members of Parliament. I hope that this will continue. I commend you for that. I want to give you that assurance as a parliamentary leader on behalf of CORD although my leader is seating here and he has not spoken. This is a very serious matter. I have always been saying that social media in this country needs to be controlled. I recently led a delegation of Pan African Parliament (PAP) Members to Ethiopia. We saw how they manage their security. I think Kenya needs to borrow a leaf from them. You cannot just post anything on social media. This country is under attack from fake accounts. I am not even sure whether this Mugo or Omosa even exist. Social media has become a recipe for disaster. It is where everything and anything can be posted without any control. It is very unfortunate that such a statement has been made on Senator No.1; a Senator from Mombasa who we really respect. Mr. Speaker, Sir, time has come when Members of Parliament need to be given extra ordinary security. I think that Sen. Hassan should be treated like any other Senator in this House. I think he should be given security to the level we have seen Sen. Wetangula and Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki being given because his life is under threat. I have a feeling that one of these days, this country will find itself in a very unfortunate situation; a situation where we allow anybody to make any comment. Therefore, in solidarity, I want to join my colleagues in the suggestion that---
Your time is up!
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I support.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity. I really longed to be given this opportunity because I think I am the one who knows Sen. Hassan more than anybody in this House. I worked with Sen. Hassan for five good years at the KNCHR. For Sen. Hassan to stand here and say that his life is under threat is something very serious. I also remember at one time Sen. Hassan was threatened when he was trying to defend the Mungiki sect members. His driver was carjacked by people who thought The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, I can see Sen. Hassan smiling and I am happy that he can still afford a smile after such serious threats. Sen. Hassan and I are avid users of the social media. He has the third highest followers after I and one other on Twitter and on Facebook. He is equally followed by so many people. He is a politician that I have always said has a very great future in politics. I usually joke that he needs a bit of pruning here and there, but he is going very far. The problem with this country, particularly with regard to the use of social media is that there are people who think that they can post anything that they want to say and write anything that they want to write and get away with it. The problem with the security system in this country is that they do not take things that are in social media as seriously they do those things that were said through television or through the media, yet it is a medium. I could have said it by texting, posting on Facebook or Twitter or saying it publicly on television, radio or anywhere. Mr. Speaker, Sir, for anyone to wish somebody else to die, or that somebody else should be killed, is sufficient to charge that person with attempted murder; contemplating to kill a Senator. These things are serious. Sen. Hassan and other people who use social media will tell you that we are the people who withstand the highest amount of vitriol spewed on us through social media. We, as politicians, have been very patient. People call you all kinds of things. They even sometimes call your mother, relatives, brothers and sisters. However, when they cross the line to go to the extent of pre-meditating and planning to terminate the life of another person, it must be taken seriously. That is why he should record the same statement that he gave the DPP with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). The CID section that deals with digital issues and social media must track those people, arrest and charge them with attempted murder. If we do not do that, we will continue encouraging all kinds of characters to use social media to issue threats or otherwise. I have seen even my colleagues, who are Members of Parliament, writing things that you could never even have contemplated. You would never have contemplated a Member of Parliament writing something about another tribe The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Senators, I think that everybody who wanted to express himself got the opportunity. You have made a number of suggestions. One is for the Inspector General of Police to enhance the security of the Senator. The other one is that a letter should be written to the DPP from my office. I will prosecute these two issues immediately I leave the Chair.
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir. My point of order is on the arrangement of business on the Order Paper.
Order, Sen. Wetangula!
If you could hear me out, Mr. Speaker, Sir.
I do not want to hear you, because I am getting there. Hear me first. Next Order!
Order, Members! Sen. Wetangula, before we proceed with the rest of the Orders, I would like to address an issue that might be of immense interest to you. You know that we have a published calendar. We, as House, agreed that we will go on recess on 4th December, 2014. So, we have only next week. We must ensure that the business originating from the National Assembly is disposed of on priority basis. We must also dispose of the business that you have generated and is still pending. Order Nos.9, 10 and 11, are not yet ready in terms of the concurrence process. So, they will be deferred until they are ready, most likely next week.
We have agreed that Order Nos.12 and 13 be brought tomorrow, with a view to concluding them tomorrow. The rest of the Orders will follow after the Motion under Order No.19. So, we will fast-track Motion No.19, which becomes the next Order. The rest of the business can follow. Depending on how we perform tomorrow, next week we may have to increase the time for business. There is also a possibility of Wednesday morning being a day for business. So, if you work efficiently, you can earn more time to yourselves. If you do not, you will have to spend a bit of more time than usual. So, if there is a Bill or Motion in your name, please, be ready to prosecute it. Sen. Wetangula. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. You have dealt with one limb of my concern in relation to Order No.19, which I was going to plead with you to bring forward, so that we dispose of it. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the second limb has to do with the responsibility for Bills. If a three-star Bill comes to the House, it means that it is a product of a Committee. Ownership and credit should be given to the Committee and not the individual or Chairperson of the Committee. So, a better way of designating the originator of the Bill should be done, other than making it look as if it is an individual bringing the Bill, when it is a product of a full Committee. So, it should be listed either as a Bill from a particular Committee or giving it a better description than making it appear like Order Nos.10 and 11. They are products of a Committee in which I sit. So, it should not look as if it is an industry of an individual.
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir. If the Senate Minority Leader had been careful, he would have seen the three asterisks, which clearly indicate that it is a Committee Bill. I do not think there is anything wrong with the Mover being the Chairman of that Committee, as long as there is an explanation in the Order Paper.
Order, Senators! Both of you, the Senator Minority Leader and the Chairperson of the Committee on Devolved Government, cannot squander the valuable time of this House by discussion things that can be discussed elsewhere. Since you have brought them to my attention, I will give you in equal measure. First, Sen. Murkomen, you have used the words “if he was careful enough,” and yet, you are the one who is not careful enough. The Senate Minority Leader was so careful enough that he read that three “stars” denotes a Committee Bill. So, his proposal is that instead of putting the name of the Chairperson, we need to put the title. For example, the title should be “Chairperson, Committee on National Security and Defence.” If you look at the other Bills, they are indicated “The Senate Majority Leader.” That is the way I understood Sen. Wetangula’s input. Secondly, Sen. Wetangula, being the Senate Minority Leader sits in a very privileged position. That position gives him a lot of access, including to one very prominent Committee known as the Rules and Business Committee (RBC). That is one area where house-keeping issues should be raised rather than on the Floor of the House. He is doing it as if he is Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, who does not have that privilege. Even Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale has the privilege of being a Member of the Liaison Committee. You are talking about a matter that does not exist, in the first instance. I hope both of you are guided. Next Order! The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Speaker, Sir, this Motion follows the numerous incidents of terrorist attacks across the country in the past three years, starting with the recent one where 28 people were killed in Mandera, Lamu, Westgate and other parts of this country in which hundreds of people have been killed. Terrorism is a global problem---
(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Order, Sen. Billow, you know the procedure; you have been in the House for a long time. Can you execute your Motion properly? Read the Motion first before you continue.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I beg to move:- THAT, noting that there have been numerous incidents of terrorist attacks across the country in the last three years, including the most recent at Arabiya town on Saturday, 22nd November, 2014 in Mandera County which have resulted in the loss of hundreds of innocent lives, injuries and massive destruction of property contrary to the principles and objects set out in Articles 238 and 239 of the Constitution; aware that Pursuant to Article 239 (1) of the constitution, the national security organs are the Kenya Defence Forces, the National Intelligence Service and the National Police Service whose primary object is to promote and guarantee national security; recognizing that most of the attacks could have been averted with proper co-ordination between and among the security organs; concerned that the multiple attacks are signs of leadership, institutional and structural flaws within the organs hampering their capacity to effectively deal with threats and cases of terrorism and other criminal activities; the Senate calls upon H.E the President to institute legislative and other measures to counter terrorist activities and overhaul and streamline the framework and operations of national security organs in the country, including initiating where necessary, the process of removal of the respective head of an organ.
(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Very well, I hope you know that while moving your Motion, you must read as is on the Order Paper to the letter. I will excuse you and order that the HANSARD records only what is written here. That must be observed. Continue.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, it is a very critical time in the history of this country. For the first time this country is facing serious challenges in security. We The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Who is seconding you?
I will ask the Senator for Makueni, Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. to second me.
.: Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I want to thank Sen. Billow for this Motion. Many things that we will contribute on this Motion, we said them yesterday in no uncertain terms. As I second this Motion, allow me to express my disappointment. The issue about the security of our people in the national Government and counties is something we have raised severally. This is an issue that is on top of everybody’s agenda. We are asking ourselves whether or not the Government is doing enough to take action to prevent the activities of terrorists to ensure that Kenyans live in peace. The person who is charged with this responsibility is none other than His Excellency the President. In his capacity as the Commander in Chief of the Defence forces, he is the person who should initiate the changes that we are asking for in this Motion, which include legislative measures, taking disciplinary action and any other action required lawfully to ensure that the people of this country enjoy the security they should get under the Constitution. Under the old Constitution, we did not have a provision where the citizens of this country were guaranteed of security. However, in the new Constitution 2010, we have given a specific provision saying that the people of this country are entitled to adequate security. What we saw in Mandera County is chilling and troubling. To some extent, the pictures that you see in the newspapers today; people lining up at the airstrip in Mandera with bags ready to be evacuated is a serious issue. I say so, because the people who live and work in Mandera are attempting to move from there to other regions. What guarantee is there if you move from Mandera to Makueni, Machakos or Nairobi that the same actions will not take place by these same hoodlums who will not blink in order to take the life of a person? While this is happening, the Government, in its many statements --- I am happy that the Kenya Television Network (KTN) yesterday analyzed some of them that the national Government has made severally out of incidents that have happened in Kapedo and Baringo. All of them seem to have been written from the same script. It is like every time they do it, they just change the headline and the person who will read it. No serious action has been taken by this Government even at the time that we lost so many Kenyans at the Westgate Mall to ensure that we have security. What is the downside? Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, again, the electronic and print media have given very chilling pictures of a ghost town called Lamu where many tourists used to visit to watch the old town and the sites, but it is now empty. Most of us will attest to the fact that in the last few months that we have been to the coastal City of Mombasa, there are no The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Thank you very much, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity to support this Motion. I want to start by thanking Sen. Billow Kerrow for raising these concerns, initiating this Motion and executing it very effectively. I want to assure him that his concerns are also shared by very many Kenyans of goodwill. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the objective and, indeed, the mandate of any Government anywhere in the world is, first and foremost, to protect the lives and property of its own citizens. In our case here in Kenya, this is achieved through the various institutions which are financed by the public, namely, the KPS, the KDF and the NIS. Their primary duty is to promote and guarantee security to all Kenyans. Despite the large amount of resources which have been made available to these institutions, in the last year or two, we have seen cases where we have lost many lives. We have seen serious violations of security in a number of our counties. We have seen problems in Baringo, West Pokot, Turkana, Tana River, Kitui, Bungoma and even in our own City, Nairobi, where people lost their lives and massive property destroyed. We have seen serious violations in Lamu and more recently, in Mandera. I do not have a chance to speak yesterday on a similar Motion, but in the case of the attacks in Mandera a few days ago, my own county and the neighbouring County of Nyamira lost eight lives. Some of these people were professionals; clinical officers working in Mandera, teachers employed by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to teach children in Mandera and Government officers. I want to take this opportunity to convey my personal condolences not only to the families of the deceased from Kisii and Nyamira, but all those who lost their lives in that incident. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, in the case of Lamu, the role of our security forces left much to be desired. The attacks took place at 8.00 p.m. and continued to 3.00 a.m. Not a single attempt was made to respond. Innocent people were killed and property destroyed and nothing significant was done by the police. Up to this day, we really do not know who the perpetrators were. There were even suspicions of complicity from among our own security forces in the case of Lamu. These are serious issues where the lives of innocent people are lost without good cause. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Thank you very much, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this very important Motion. As I read this Motion, I agree entirely with the Mover, up to the counter terrorist activities. I say so, because the President has already been mandated and the Constitution also mandates the National Security Council (NSC), which constitutes of the President, the Deputy President, Cabinet Secretaries in charge of Defence, Foreign Affairs, Interior and co-ordination of National Government, the Attorney General, Chief of Defence Forces, Director General of National Intelligence Service (NIS) and the Inspector- General. It is their mandate to exercise advisory control over national security organs and perform any other function prescribed by the national legislation. The Chairman, who presides over the Council, appoints the secretary. Article 241(1) (6) (b) states that:- “The Council shall access and appraise objectives, commitments and risks to the republic in respect of actual and potential national Security capabilities.” The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): You are still handsome, Mr. Senator.
Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. You know when it becomes secret issues.
(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): You are still the same Leshore that I knew.
I do not want to be so emotional. I do not want to defend ole Lenku, but if today you give him those military uniforms, what will he do alone? There is some disconnect on the ground between our NPS officers, the APs, the regular police, the military and the regional coordinators. I enquired immediately after I heard that the bus was attacked, I know the gentlemen who were running the NIS in that region. I worked with them sometime back in Mandera. During our time, we used to know anything happening in Mogadishu within one hour. What has happened now that we have given them Kshs23 billion and they cannot know what is inside Somalia which is 20 kilometres away? If Al Shabaab had that camp 20 kilometres away, why did our military, the KDF allow it to exist all that time and we have gone up to Kismayu? Let us ask ourselves and push the NSC to tell us what is happening. If they have failed, they should tell Kenyans that they have failed because everybody from the top to the bottom has taken off to defend the people of Kenya. Kenyans have given them that mandate and resources. If they are lacking resources, they should come back to us and tell us that they do not have enough resources. For the last one or two years, I have seen The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this timely Motion brought by Sen. Billow. There is this monster called terrorism. It is tearing our country apart. It is also tearing the whole world apart. It is a pity that it seems to have found a soft landing place in our country. Many parts of the country have suffered. Innocent Kenyans have been invaded; they have lost lives and property. Most Kenyans are now confused as we have seen in Mandera and they do not know what to do next. They have packed their things and want to go home because where they work has become so unsafe. No one is ready and willing to give them a lift to go back home. Do we know what our sisters and brothers are going through wherever they are? We, as a nation, have not solved the problem of Internally Displaced Persons (IPDs). However, we are still getting more in the name of terrorism. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, unless this Motion is taken seriously and implemented to the letter, terrorism will continue to cause a lot of harm to us. It has The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me this chance to contribute to this good Motion. Just like my colleagues who have expressed themselves before me, let me say that I am also a sad leader because of the many things which have befallen our country. I just want to tell fellow leaders that they should not engage in blame game. We should look at it soberly and think about our great nation. Look at yourself as a leader who was elected and sworn in. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, security is paramount and it comes first before anything else. I just want to echo the sentiments of other Senators who spoke yesterday and say that development cannot take place without peace. No matter the amount of development we can put into this land, if we will not have peace, then it will be in vain. I call upon each and every leader to think and take the issue of security seriously. Let us not just think about a department because wherever we have reached, the issue calls on sober minds to think, contribute and ask what we can do for this nation. What can we do, so that the department of internal security can function properly? We hope the generations to come after us can find a good nation; a nation where they can invest without fear and go about their duties everyday without any fear that their tomorrow will not be good or safe. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, let me take this opportunity to condole with families all over the country who lost their dear ones through the incidences of terrorism. I also encourage my President and the entire leadership of the Government and tell them not to feel as if terrorists have won. They have not won. As Kenyans, let us stand firm and strong. We have read and we have been told by many people, including the Governor for Mandera that the information about what happened there had already been given to the police. The information was provided that some heavily armed people had been spotted in that area. I feel as leaders, irrespective of where we are or the department that we work for, we really need to take security seriously. I would have expected those leaders to call for meetings or the Governor to call all leaders and tell them: “Please, our county has some problems. Some heavily armed people have been spotted.” From there, maybe they could have sensitized the people on the issue. To hear the story that already this information had been passed without any action, as the leadership, let us sober up and not look at the issue of security as just a departmental or a particular ministry’s concern. The County Police Commandant on the ground squarely takes the blame of what happened in Mandera. I believe if that information was passed to him, he should have passed a word and not even allowed the bus which was heading to Nairobi continue with its journey. I feel that if heads are to roll, those are the ones which should roll. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
(Sen. (Dr) Machage): Order! Unfortunately, our Standing Orders do not allow partial support of a Motion. You support a Motion as it is, unless you intend to move an amendment.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I move an Amendment that the Motion reads that ---
(Sen. (Dr) Machage): Order! Order! If you have an intention to move an amendment, then the Chair must be privy to your intention. You should draft it. I may excuse you and remove the one hour requirement, but it must be written. The Chair must be privy to the information that the amendment has no intention The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, in the spirit of nationhood and to ensure that we get the best of ----
(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Order! Draft your amendment. Let the Mover of the Motion look at it. If he agrees with the shifting of the idea, that will be good.
Asante, Bw. Spika wa Muda, kwa kunipa nafasi hii. Ningependa kuunga mkono Hoja hii iliyoletwa hapa na Seneta wa Mandera. Ningependa kusema amani ni kitu cha maaana katika nchi yoyote. Bila amani hatuwezi kuwa na maendeleo yoyote katika nchini. Biashara huimarika kama kama kuna amani. Watalii watazuru nchini ikiwa kuna amani. Uchumi wa nchi yetu hutegemea sana watalii. Vijana wetu wanaweza kufanya biashara ikiwa kuna amani nchini. Jambo la kushangaza ni kwamba hakuna amani katika nchi yetu ya Kenya. Hakuna amani kwa sababu ya mambo tofauti tofauti. Viongozi wakuu waliopewa mamlaka ya kuongoza nchi hii, hasa katika upande wa amani wamezembea kazini. Watu wawili ama watatu katika vitengo vya upelelezi, ujasusi na wanaokabili fujo nchini wamezembea katika kazi zao. Ukiangalia upande wa Lamu utaona kwamba usiku huo kabla ya kisa kutendeka, Gavana alipiga simu na kuzungumza na watu wa Idara ya Ujasusi. Idara ilijua kabisa kwamba Mpeketoni kungekuwa na shida lakini hawakuchukua tahadhari yoyote. Tunauliza kwa nini hakuna jambo lilofanyika kama Idara ya Ujasusi ilipeana habari kwamba kungetokea maafa fulani. Kwa nini watu ambao wamepewa mamlaka ya kushughulika na kuchukua habari kutoka kule hawakuchukua hatua ya kuzuia mambo hayo? Jambo kama hili halifai kuruhusiwa kutendeka katika nchi huru. Kama watu wamepewa mamlaka ya kufanya kazi, basi wafanye kazi. Kama watu hawawezi kufanya kazi, basi wawachie wale ambao wanaweza kufanya kazi. Jambo lingine ambalo linasikitisha sana ni hali ya usalama katika Mkoa wa Pwani kuanzia Kaunti ya Lamu, Kilifi, Mombasa, Kwale, Taita na Tana River. Maeneo haya yote hutegemea shughuli za kiutalii. Sasa hivi, tunaona baadhi ya Misikiti imefungwa. Haya ndio maeneo tulikulia na kusomea. Visingizio vingi vinanza kutokea hapa na pale. Watu wamekuwa wakisema wamepata hiki na kile ndani ya Misikiti. Jawabu si kufunga Misikiti lakini kuwauliza wale ambao tumewapeleka Kiganjo kusoma kujua kwa nini vitendo kama hivi vinafanyika na vile tunavyoweza kuvipinga. Hatufai kukimbilia Misikitini tukisema kuna watu ambao wanafundishwa mambo fulani na wanafaa kushikwa na kuwekwa ndani. Hivi sasa, ukiangalia mahali kama Mombasa au pwani kwa ujumla, kuna vijana wengi ambao wameshikwa. Wamewekwa ndani. Watu wamekuwa wakishikwa kutoka kwa nyumba zao, wanasimamishwa na kuwekwa katika malori na kusafirishwa hadi vituo vya polisi. Watoto, wanawake na vijana wanashikwa bila sababu yo yote. Hatuwezi kuwa na hali kama hii ya sitofahamu. Katiba yetu inasema kushika Mkenya mwingine na kumweka ndani kwa vile unamshuku, huo ni uvunjaji wa sheria. Lazima kuwe na kielelezo fulani ya kwamba mtu The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I join my colleagues in thanking Sen. Billow for not being tired of bringing this topic of security again and again. It is like it is a dominant subject in our Motions, Bills and the Business of this House. If you can recall, since we constituted the sitting last year, a number of statements have been made regarding security. Motions have been made on security and nearly every Member in this House has sought a statement or moved a Motion or a Bill on security issues. That tells you that we are entering into a time when, if we are not careful as Kenyans, we might play or lose the destiny and the statehood of Kenya. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the Mover of this Motion has said that it is as a result of the tragedy that took place in his own home county. Many other counties have suffered similar fates. The national security organs which we know are the KDF, NIS and NPS. Their primary objective is to promote and guarantee national security. We need to see how they can work together. I do not think there is anything that may be required to be written even further although the Mover says we need to get more legislative measures and more documents to be reproduced. If there is a country that is very good at producing papers, it is Kenya. We may be already having these legislative laws we require in order to be effective. However, we are lacking the implementation bit. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, when a governor says that the information was passed about some bandits crossing from another country to Kenya and they were planning an attack, whom did he talk to? Who was given the first information? That Governor is alive and kicking. He should be asked: Whom did he pass that information to? Whoever received the information should shed tears and say, he is sorry because of his inability to take action and this tragedy took place. If that information had been reacted to, sufficient protection would have been given over that period of time when these crooks were seen around. In fact, the necessary protection would have been given to all the vehicles and all persons who live there. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, as we suggest that some people must go, the person who must go home very fast and, in fact, to jail from Mandera is the officer who was given the information by the county government system, but he failed to act. Do we know the name of that person? Why is the character still on the government payroll? Here, we are talking about somebody higher in the rank called ole Lenku and another one called Kimaiyo. However, here we have a name of an officer whose physical address and house number is known, but he failed to take action. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the Kapedo tragedy is a living example of what has gone wrong in our systems. On 30th of September, 2014, some funny killings took place in Kapedo centre where somebody’s head was chopped. Up to today, it has not been found. The body is still lying in a mortuary in Kabarnet Town. When the young men went to report to our General Service Unit (GSU), Kapedo, the officers did not take action. I believe they also reported to the chief, DO and the DC, but they too did not take action. Do we know the names of the officers who these young men reported to that one of them had been killed by some fellow within there and he ought to be arrested? What did the GSU officers do? They escorted the said killer to run away. He went and hid himself. It was just like the usual killings between the two communities; the Pokot and the Turkana. They must have told him, “Go and hide, this episode will be forgotten. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
On a point of order, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. Did you see the hon. Senator for Busia County who is the Attorney-General Emeritus, enter the Chamber as if he is entering a restaurant without going through the usual procedure of bowing to the Chair? Is he in order?
Sen. Wako, did you walk in without giving respect to the Chair and the House?
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I stood there and did it. If they did not see, then let me do it again so that they can see.
Then, can you do that?
Now, you can come in.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the hon. Senator for Busia County needs to be told that even at Busia border point, he cannot just cross like that. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, what I was saying is what was the action that was required by the communities so that, that problem be sorted out immediately. For two consecutive months, this problem matured until it went outrageously wrong that we lost our young men; 21 officers the other day. Who was given the first information? There must be somebody who was told. What did he do? Is this inaction or inertia? What must have made our officers, who were the first to be told this, not to act? That person should have been sent home or to jail because we ended up losing people because they failed to take action. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, we know we have recruited officers. These officers were supposed to start their training in July, 2014. Therefore, 10,000 officers are not being trained because the court cancelled the whole recruitment process. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, we need more police officers in Mandera, Garissa and Lamu to beef up security. The Lamu situation is very dramatic because I hear that up to now, they are still extending the curfew as if the Kenya Government does not exist there. What is so difficult when we have already taken possession and removed the culprits? Why must we continue oppressing the economy of that place? Something has gone wrong with our system. We are not fighting another country. These are just problems that we need to stop. We do not need to spread them so as not to affect our economy. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, something must be weirdly wrong. Suppose we have called officers to go and arrest a situation, why must they go in such a manner as if they are going to destroy everything there and come and tell people, this has happened. Look at the two vivid examples in Mandera. In a twinkle of an eye in the afternoon, we The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
I have not seen that amendment yet. I think the best way to go is to allow the Mover to come up with the amendment.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the Mover has already seen it. We should have a complete overhaul of what we have. When a problem erupts, for example, in Mandera, people start blaming the leaders; that it could be as a result of the utterances of some leaders. We start panicking and talking hopelessly instead of addressing the real situation. For the last three years, we have been undergoing inspection before we enter shopping malls or even offices. Why are we subjected to this exercise? This means that things have fallen apart. We should go back to the restoration order. Three years ago, Kenyans enjoyed their peace and free movement. However, now if you do not have an identification card which you could have forgotten in the office, you cannot access, for example, the KICC where some of us have offices. That is where we The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I need your guidance because I would like to support the amendment together with a further amendment to the amendment. I am not quite clear on the procedure.
We will deal with the first amendment and then after putting the Question and we dispose of that, a further amendment can be moved.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I rise to second this amendment by Sen. (Prof.) Lonyangapuo. The issue of national security has become an urgent and almost a permanent feature of our political life. It is only the other day we were talking about Kapedo and before that we were talking about the issues in Mombasa, Mandera and Lamu. We do not know where next we shall be talking about issues of insecurity. His Excellency the President has been holding a meeting today with the security officers regarding the deteriorating security situation in the country. We too as a legislature; as a Senate, have a duty also to do much more than what we have been doing. We have passed Motions upon Motions on the legislature calling upon the Government to do various things, but it is our mandate which we have been given by the Constitution to do proper investigations and make more concrete recommendations to the Government as to what can be done to stem the spiraling and deteriorating security situation in the country. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I support this amendment whole heartedly. The effect and the crux of which is to investigate, find people who were responsible and make a suitable recommendation. If that is so, then I agree with what Sen. Murungi stated that the Standing Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights---
On a point of order, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I would like to know if I am not reflecting on the request list because I requested to give my contribution a long time ago.
Hon. Senator, I think we are trying to give a direction on this Motion. It was an amendment then a further amendment. After that, I will give you an opportunity. I can see you are there; so be patient.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the purpose of my intervention is to make sure that when she speaks, she does so comprehensively on the amendments and further amendments. In as much as the amendment talks about investigations, finding people who are culpable, making suitable recommendations and,maybe, consider such other and further matters that are incidental to the foregoing, then the Standing Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights becomes very relevant. This is because the joint Committee is almost like a commission of inquiry. This is a human rights commission of inquiry. Therefore, it is a matter of justice and law and the mandate of the Standing Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights is to consider all matters relating to constitutional affairs, relating to the organization and administration of law and justice. It falls squarely within our purview. In as much as it will also be required to make recommendations on legislations ---
Sen. G.G Kariuki, do you have an intervention?
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir
On a point of order, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. Through the amendment which my friend, the former Attorney-General Sen. Wako wants to introduce, does it suggest in any way that the Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations will not be in a position to deliver and has to be added another group calling itself the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights? I need a clarification. You have to make a ruling. I believe it is not genuine because I am a Member of that Committee and we have been tasked by the House through the first amendment to do the needful whereas another amendment is coming and if we are not careful another amendment will come for the inclusion of the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Budget. Where are we going?
On a point of order Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. Every Committee in this House has a mandate. However, there are many instances where from the Floor of this House, the Speaker has directed that two Committees work together on a particular issue. It happened, for example, when the issue of Isiolo came here; both the Committees on Finance, Commerce and Budget were involved. It is normal that sometimes two Committees look into the matter because of the different mandates. For example, in this one where there are human rights, the mandate of this Committee is to assist. It is also useful because we normally have challenges of quorum, and so when you have nine Members and sometimes you have to do this kind of work, you need more Members. In fact, it is good when they are two. That is what we have realized in our Committee when we worked with the Committee on Devolved Government. It is not undermining them, but it is helping them to work together more effectively.
Please, hon. Senators, if possible, let us dispose of this Motion today because as we had discussed earlier, there is lot of work ahead of us. We need to dispose of others tomorrow and, by next week, we will try to finish what is pending.
Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. In light of what Sen. G.G Kariuki has said and in light of what Sen. Murungi and Sen. Wako have proposed, and considering that the time limit we have given them is very short, would I be in order to suggest an ad hoc Committee comprising of Members of both sides or other Members of the Senate be given that specific task of 90 days?
That is another amendment you want to bring. Sen. Adan, do you also have an intervention.
Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. Unfortunately, I belong to the two Committees. I do echo what Sen. G.G. Kariuki has said in terms of inability of the Committee to deal with the matter or the responsibility that has been allocated to it. Maybe it is good to clarify that we are not merging the two Committees because the Committee is unable to deal with the matter. But I agree with the point that was brought out by Sen. Billow Kerrow regarding quorum. We normally face a lot of challenges. Through this we can strengthen the two Committees to come up with an effective report.
Let me make a ruling on this. First of all, Sen. Billow, that was not a point of order. Standing Order 206 provides that two The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I just want to assure the Vice Chairperson of the Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations and the former Minister in charge of Internal Security, who served this country very well that, that we are in no way questioning the capacity and capability of that Committee to discharge its work. What we are saying is that in view of the national importance of this issue, and all the issues relating to this matter, it is necessary that the two Committees work together. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I beg to move that the Motion be further amended by inserting the words “and the Standing Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights” after the words “Foreign Relations.” Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir.
Who is seconding?
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I second.
We are now debating the Motion as amended and further amended to include the two committees.
Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I want to support the Motion as amended with further amendments. I want to concur with my colleagues on the issue of insecurity in this country. I want to say that prevention is better than cure. Kenyans are tired of insecurity. Kenyans are tired of being told that investigation is being done after people have lost their lives. As I am speaking right now, Kenyans are mourning their loved ones. It has become a routine that investigation will be done, but after burial nothing continues. It is time for this country to change strategy on how to handle the issue of insecurity. It should not be a routine. After 50 years, the routine on security in this country has not changed. The security organs are not changing to cope with the increased hooliganism in this country. Allow me to say that as we join Kenyans to mourn their loved ones who perished in Mandera, Kapedo and Mombasa, it is time for the security organs be held accountable. People have just decided to take the law into their own hands, do whatever they want. This is because if the issue is reported, the way it is The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Sen. Omondi, please, try to finalize. Whatever you have done is not bad, but try to finalize so that we can dispose of the amendment.
Thank you. We, as leaders, must unite so that we can bring this to an end; so that Kenyans are assured of their security. I support.
Hon. Senators, the amended Motion reads as follows:- THAT, noting that there have been numerous incidents of terrorist attacks across the country in the last three years, including the most recent at Arabiya Town on Saturday, 22nd November, 2014 in Mandera County which have resulted in the loss of hundreds of innocent lives, injuries and massive destruction of property contrary to the principles and objects set out in Articles 238 and 239 of the Constitution; aware that pursuant to Article 239(1) of the Constitution, the national security organs are the Kenya Defence Forces, the National Intelligence Service and the National Police Service whose primary object is to promote and guarantee national security; recognizing that most of the attacks could have been averted with proper co-ordination between and among the security organs; concerned that the multiple attacks are signs of leadership, institutional and structural flaws within the organs hampering their capacity to effectively deal with threats and cases of terrorism and other criminal activities; the Senate calls upon H.E the President to institute legislative and other measures to counter terrorist activities and overhaul and streamline the framework and operations of national security organs in the country including initiating where necessary, the process of removal of the respective head of an organ, and further that the Standing Committees on National Security and Foreign Relations and Legal Affairs and Human rights to; (a) Investigate the circumstances under which the Mandera bus attack and Kapedo massacre occurred; (b) establish whether there were failures in institutional command or operational structure that led to the attacks; and (c) determine who is culpable for the increased incidents of terror and major attacks in the country and report to the senate within ninety days. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.
Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. The original Motion was okay, but I also do not have a quarrel with the amendment. In the main debate on the Motion, we talked about people who are supposed to be thrown out of the system because we claimed they are not doing the right job. We must know that if Kimaiyo, the Inspector-General or ole Lenku had the opportunity to explain themselves the way we do here, you would also find that they have major problems and that is why they cannot move. This is something we need to think about very critically. You cannot expect the two gentlemen to be in a situation where they do not care and, therefore, need to go. That will not be an answer. We need to change our political culture as far as security is concerned. We have a problem in the Northern Province. This has to be dealt with mercilessly. This should not be through attacking people with guns, but to do a very serious organizational structure that will improve the affairs of security in this part of the world. That is not a simple thing. Someone cannot just come and claim that he will create peace in those areas. You have to move the military personnel, have a base somewhere like Mandera, South Horr and another near the Elemi Triangle to make sure that whatever happens is visible. You have to keep watch towers all over the place so that you see through all the facilities when we are being infiltrated. The way things are now, we cannot stop people from Somalia from coming into Kenya. This is very difficult. In fact, when a decision was taken to take our army to Somalia, I remember that it is only me who stood up to say that we had done something without being prepared and we should be aware that we have opened a new chapter. This is a chapter that will be handled internationally. When these are international affairs, it is not fair that we sit here and start accusing one another. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, owing to limited time, I want to say this. If we could have this House in camera and bring all the people involved in matters of security so that they come here and speak freely, I think we would get answers. However, answers cannot come from the National Security Council where all the bosses are. This can only be done somewhere where politicians will baptize these people and I know they would say something. This is very critical. We should not assume that there are people from certain tribes and cultures. Which tribe does not have criminals in this country? I just want to be told. The fact is that some of the criminal gangs have a wider area of operation than others. I thank you very much for allowing me to say those words.
(Sen. Mositet); Order! Sen. G.G. Kariuki, if you want to continue tomorrow, you will have five minutes. Hon. Senators, it is now time to adjourn the Senate. The Senate stands adjourned until tomorrow, Thursday, 27th November, 2014 at 2.30 p.m. The Senate rose at 6.30 p.m. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.