Hon. Senators, pursuant to Standing Order No.220(1)(a) and 224(1)(b), I hereby report to the Senate that a Petition has been submitted through the Clerk by the Council of Chairpersons of County Wildlife Conservation and Compensation Committees (CWCCs), regarding alleged non- operationalisation of certain provisions of the Wildlife Conservation and Amendment Act No.47 of 2013. As you are aware, under Article 119(1) of the Constitution, every person has a right to petition Parliament to consider any matter within its authority, including enacting, amending or repealing any legislations. The salient issues raised in the said Petition are: 1. That, Section 18 of the Wildlife Compensation and Management Act No.47 of 2013 establishes CWCCs for each county and provides for its membership. Section 19 of the Act further outlines the functions of such committees. 2. That, Section 21 of the same Act provides for payment of allowances to members of the CWCCs as shall be determined by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC). 3. That, following passage of the Act, the CWCCs were constituted in February, 2015 and have been carrying out their functions and mandate as set out in the Act. The term of the current CWCCs is due to elapse in February, 2018, on completion of their three year term. 4. That, despite (3) above, the framework for payment of allowances to chairpersons and members of CWCCs is yet to be agreed upon between the line Ministry and the SRC, as a result of which the chairpersons and members of the CWCCs are yet to be paid their monthly honoraria since assuming office in February, 2015.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me a chance to comment on the wildlife Act and the Petition that has been brought to our attention. I remember very well when this Bill was passed in the Eleventh Parliament, we thought it would be a solution toto human-wildlife conflicts in our counties. However, it is very sad that up to today, the Act has not been operationalised to save our people and domestic animals. I urge this House to get into this matter and urge the Ministry concerned to operationalise the Act because our people are suffering. As I speak, wildlife are invading our homes and consuming our animals because of the current drought in our country and there is no compensation. If you seek for compensation, you are taken round in circles. You are either told this is a county or national government issue. The committee concerned must take this matter seriously, investigate it and see how it can help in the operationalisation of the Act. I also urge this House to assist us to make sure that the CWMCs are operational so that they look into the issue of compensation. I call upon the Cabinet Secretary concerned to act very fast and prioritise this matter to help our people.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, thank you for this opportunity. It is imperative that we take serious consideration in setting up these committees because our people are suffering. In the Maasai Mara Game Reserve, for example, we have a huge human- wildlife conflict. We also have a problem with our domestic animals. Right now, we have a huge drought. There are things that need to be considered. It appears that in most cases, wildlife is given priority in this country because of the foreign income. It is sad, just like Sen. Seneta has alluded to, animals are more precious than human beings. I think when we have these committees in place, they will look at the issue of balance between wildlife and our animals. Yesterday, I received a phone call from an old man from the Masaai Mara. He told me when there is a severe drought, ordinarily, they are allowed to access parks at night to graze their cows. We have thousands and thousands of cows that used to be given access to the park at night. In fact, when you go to Masaai Mara, Sikinani or Talik, you will be surprised because during the day, that is

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to comment on the Petition that is before us this afternoon. I would like to say that 60 to 70 or 80 per cent of wildlife live outside government protected areas. Therefore, the people who should be custodians of these wildlife – and who have been hosting them – more than the Government is the community. So, if there is a provision within the Act that is going to empower the communities to take charge of wildlife conservation outside the protected areas, it should be given priority. In support of the Petition, there are several conservation approaches in the country. This includes the Government protected areas such as the national parks, which is what Sen. Olekina is describing, where domestic animals do not go in and they have to go at night. There are also private ranches and community conservancies. With all these, most of the wildlife in this country is hosted by communities. Therefore, these committees give our communities a chance to participate in conservation and benefit from it because, in large part, one of the issues around wildlife crisis is because of the fact that there is disproportionate amount of benefits that go to people that do not host the wildlife or to other places. The petitioner has a right to alert this House to this fact. Senators should, therefore, give this Petition priority and ensure that we get this actualized and implemented as soon as possible. Having laws is one thing but they are not useful if we are not going to make sure that they are implemented. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the issue is beyond human-wildlife conflict but, of course, the Committees would help with human-wildlife conflict. But beyond that, I think that it is about time communities that have lived, hosted and even been custodians of the wild-life of this country get a say and participate in conservation of the same. They should actually be given the chance to do so especially if there are provisions in law that have given them the right to participate. So, Mr. Speaker, Sir, I humbly request this House to take this issue seriously. The economy and tourism of this country is largely wildlife-based. But what is the trickle- down effect of the economics of that fact? Are the communities really feeling it? So, if the implementation of this Act would empower the communities, this is something that we should support. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I will bring a Bill before this House on community conservancy resourcing in the next few weeks. But when I saw this Petition, I thought what a good thing to start with because little steps do add up. As a conservationist, I have observed

Proceed, Sen. Wamatangi.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I had actually not pressed the button, but---

That is okay. Proceed Sen. (Eng.) Maina

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I stand to support this Petition and the Bill because I happen to have some experience about human-wildlife conflict. I hope this Bill will bring some framework for the people who live close to our wildlife. Sometime back, I built a water project for the Maasai Community in Amboseli and the whole idea was to take water from the national park to the ranches on the boundary of the park. During the opening ceremony, the late hon. Oloitiptip, who came to open the water project, was put to task by the Maasai people. They said that during the rainy seasons, the wild animals move from the park which is swampy at that time to their ranches. They also said that during the dry seasons, their cattle went to the park to graze. But now, we were giving them water so as to stop them from grazing in the park. I witnessed a conflict there. I must say that in the conservation that we are geared to in Kenya, we must ensure that there is some friendly co-existence between the animals and the local people who live near the parks. At this juncture, I must mention that even if we set up these committees, Kenya needs to have a broad look at this matter. The people who live near the wildlife need to benefit in a better way rather than just wait for their animals to be killed by a lion and then compensate them. The compensation to be given should also be reasonable. Mr. Speaker, Sir, Kenya, in its conservation efforts, has even banned culling of animals. In this House, I will be pushing that culling of these animals is allowed because the wild animals also move from their places of existence when they are starved due to over population. When animals are kept in a park like Lake Nakuru National Park which has a limited area, over the years, the animals continue breeding and end up over populated. For instance, there could be about 200 lions without as many zebras to keep the balance. This results in the wildlife animals straying out into farms and ranches. Therefore, I hope that the recommendations to this Bill will come from the local level, which will result in better management of the wildlife and the people living around the wildlife conservation areas. I hope the same Bill is going to make recommendation for benefits and compensation of the communities living around the wildlife. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I support this Bill and I look forward to supporting it further.

Thank you, Sen. (Eng.) Maina. However, this is a Petition and not a Bill. Proceed, Sen. Cheruiyot.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for giving me this chance. I support this Petition in the spirit that this Senate, which is the third Senate of the Republic of Kenya, owes a duty to Kenyans to treat all matters that come before it with the seriousness it deserves. It is my sincere hope that this shall not be treated with the

Thank you. Proceed, Sen. Kinyua.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity. I beg to support this Petition and we should seriously work on it. This is because the area that I come from, Laikipia County, this is the biggest problem that we have; human-wildlife conflict. For instance, if you go to a place called Kinamba, we hardly plant any crops because we neighbour big ranches which have a lot of elephants. After we plant, it is the elephants which come to harvest the crops and yet we cannot milk the elephants. That is our big problem. Whenever we seek compensation, we are taken round in circles. Therefore, I recommend that we move swiftly and make sure that we operationalize this Act so that when our livestock are eaten by leopards, we can be paid. This is because as Sen. Olekina said, most of us are pastoralists who depend on our livestock. Once they are eaten by lions, we do not know exactly what to do. The other problem is that whenever we erect our fences, these animals destroy them and we do not get compensation. So, I recommend that this Petition should be acted on quickly so that we can have a lasting solution and stop our persistent complaints. In many parts of Laikipia County, especially now that there is a lot of drought, we have a lot of problems because even the animals themselves cannot get enough grass or pasture where they live. So, they end up in our farms and we end up with a lot of problems. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

Thank you. Proceed, Sen. (Prof.) Ekal.

Like everybody else, Mr. Speaker, Sir, I would also like to add my voice to this Petition in an affirmative way. Petitions like this are necessary because Kenya is largely still under livestock rearing; while the wild animals exist and they also need to eat. Although we make laws and rules about preserving wildlife animals, there is one area that is lacking; which is civic education of the folks, the people or wananchi; that having wild animals is beneficial to the country. At the same time, we should also give them an alternative as to what happens if a lion, a leopard or a fox consumes some of those animals. What are they supposed to do? In my part of the world, a lot of these animals are roaming around and they come at night and devour people’s animals. I spent the weekend with a man who told me that ten of his goats were consumed by foxes. I tried to explain to him that foxes are the property of the Government and he will be compensated but he did not buy the idea, which means that he lacks education in that aspect. He told me to bring him some poisonous chemicals that can get rid of the foxes which, of course, I did not support. When we make these laws, we also need to educate the people and give them the alternatives and act on them. It is useless to say that when a person’s domestic animals are consumed by wild animals, he or she will be compensated but when they ask for the compensation, they do not get it and they resort to taking matters into their own hands and the country ends up losing because the animals are eliminated from the world. The Petition is well placed and we want to get ahead with it.

I note that the time allocated for that discussion is over. Therefore, hon. Senators, pursuant to Standing Order No. 226 (1), the Petition stands committed to the relevant Standing Committee, in this case, the Standing Committee on Lands, Environment and Natural Resources. In terms of Standing Order No. 226(2), the Committee is required, in not more than 60 days from the time of reading the prayer to respond to the petitioners by way of a report addressed to the petitioner and laid on the Table of the Senate. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I beg to lay the following Papers on that Table of the Senate, Today, Tuesday, 10th October, 2017: THE PSC ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE FY 2016/2017 (a)The Public Service Commission (PSC) Annual Report for the financial year 2016/2017. VARIOUS POLICIES FROM THE EXECUTIVE (b)The National Irrigation Policy 2017 (c)The National Slum Upgrading and Prevention Policy; Sessional Paper No.2 of 2016

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I thank you. I rise pursuant to Standing Order No. 46 (2)(b). The Statement would ordinarily have been sought from the Chairperson of the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Budget. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I want to deliberately direct this request to the Senate Majority Leader because I know that the Committees have not been fully constituted. Pursuant to provisions of Standing Order No. 46 (2) (b), I rise to seek a Statement from the Senate Majority Leader in relation to the status of disbursement of funds to county governments for the Financial Year 2017/2018. The Division of Revenue Bill was assented to on 21st June 2017. In the Statement, the Chairperson should: (1)Explain the reasons for failure by the Cabinet Secretary (CS) for the National Treasury to gazette the disbursement schedule for counties in time as provided for in the law. (2) Explain the reasons for the late disbursement of funds to the counties for the month of August and September which have not been disbursed up to date, contrary to the law. (3) Explain the measures the Government has put in place to cushion counties from the resultant cash crunch.

Senate Majority Leader, can you commit yourself on when this will be ready?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I request Sen. Khaniri to give us two weeks to respond to this particular Statement.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I think the House and the hon. Senator should appreciate the urgency of this matter; counties are coming to a halt. I am sure that these answers are there; it is not something that will be researched on. The hon. Senator will do this House a lot of good if this Statement can be responded to this week. We do not need two weeks to research on this. Honestly, I am sure that the answers are there.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, having listened to Sen. Khaniri, I will try my best to see whether we will have the Statement by Thursday which will be a day after tomorrow. It may not be possible but I will try my best. In the event that I will not get it, I will try to deliver it after recess.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I have a couple of Statements. These Statements would probably go to a different Committee but I have decided to direct them to the Senate Majority Leader.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, looking at the Statement, it requires an investigation to be done. For us to give a comprehensive answer, I request Sen. Olekina to give me two weeks to respond to his Statement.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, two weeks is such a long period. Parents have paid tuition fees and there is no reason as to why a public university should be closed. I request to get this Statement before we go on recess on Thursday because this Senate Calendar is designed in a way. We will be on recess until 7th November, 2017.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, ordinarily, this Statement has to be sent to Narok for them to give a comprehensive answer in terms of what happened. I will request---

Did you say Kisumu or Narok?

I said UoN and Mathare.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, with all due respect to Sen. Olekina, I request him to give us two weeks to reply to this Statement because we only have tomorrow to get the answer which is not possible. If I promise to give an answer on Thursday, I will be lying.

I think two weeks looks reasonable so that thorough investigations are done and you get a proper answer than hurrying and getting a half- baked answer. Proceed, Sen. Khaniri

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I rise, pursuant to Standing Order No. 46 (2) (a), to make a Statement that I should have made two weeks ago. Unfortunately, I was unable to make it before we broke for recess and, secondly, I was bereaved and I had to travel to Vihiga County.

Thank you. Are there any comments on the same? If none, we will have Sen. Were. CONTINUED STRIKE BY NURSES IN PUBLIC HOSPITALS IN THE COUNTRY

Mr. Speaker, Sir, pursuant to Standing Order No.46(2)(b), I rise to seek a statement from the Senate Majority Leader regarding the continued strike by nurses in public hospitals in the country. In the statement, the Senate Majority Leader should:- (1) Indicate the cumulative period in which nurses in public hospitals in the country have been on strike for the past five years. (2) Table the scheme of service for nurses and the respective salaries and allowances for each group under the scheme. (3) Explain who between the national Government and the Council of Governors (CoG) is mandated to negotiate and sign the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the nurses’ union. (4) Explain why the strike by nurses has taken too long to resolve. (5) Table a list of counties where nurses in public hospitals are currently on strike and those counties whose nurses are not on strike. (6) Explain the measures the Government has put in place to alleviate the suffering of patients during the period when nurses are on strike. (7) Explain the measures the Government has put in place to bring the strike by nurses and other medical professionals to an end.

Let us have the Senate Majority Leader respond to that. I can see Sen. Dullo.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, we will provide the statement after recess.

Hon. Senator, you may need to give a definite date. You do not just give a general statement.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I meant to say the first week after recess.

Hon. Lusaka): Do you know when recess is ending? We want something definite.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, we are expected to come back on 7th November, 2017 and I will give provide the statement then.

Okay. Let us now have Sen. (Dr.) Musuruve.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I rise pursuant to Standing Order No.46(2)(b) to seek a statement from the Senate Majority on the alleged abuse of human rights of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs). In the statement, the Senate Majority Leader should:- (1) State whether the Government is aware that PWDs from Kenya and other neighbouring countries are allegedly being trafficked and housed in Nairobi and other major towns in the country. (2) Further state whether the Government is aware that the said PWDs are used by able-bodied people to beg on the streets in Nairobi and other major towns, against articles 28, 30, 43 and 54 of the Constitution. (3) State the measure that the Government has taken or will take to deal with those found culpable of trafficking in PWDs and using the said persons to beg on the streets. (4) Explain the measures that the Government will put in place to repatriate PWDs from the neighbouring countries who are involved in begging on the streets of Nairobi and other major towns. (5) Explain the steps that the Government will take to support Kenyan persons living with disabilities and especially those on the streets to come up with sustainable means of earning a living. Mr. Speaker, Sir, that is my first statement but I have another statement to seek. Can I proceed?

You can proceed. MAINSTREAMING OF LEARNERS WITH DISABILITY IN THE EDUCATION CURRICULUM

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I rise pursuant to Standing Order No.46(2)(b) to seek a statement from the Senate Majority Leader on the mainstreaming of learners with disability in the education curriculum. In the statement, the Senate Majority Leader should:- (1) State the number of learners with disabilities in various public and private learning institutions in the country. (2) Table a list of schools for learners with disabilities and the number of learners in each of the schools. (3) State when the new education curriculum will be rolled out. (4) Table a list of schools for learners with disabilities and the number of learners in the respective institutions that are slotted for the piloting of the new education curriculum. (5) State the measures that the Ministry of Education has put in place to improve the performance of children with disabilities and especially those that have hearing impairment and are faced with linguistic challenges which affect their overall performance. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I thank you.

Let us have the Senate Majority Leader to reply or another Senator on his behalf.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, we will provide the statement on 10th November.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, disability is an issue that many people are not sensitive about and we need to talk about it with passion. As we speak now, people with disabilities still continue to be abused in the streets of Nairobi. According to our Constitution, it is very wrong for their dignity to be reduced that way by allowing them to beg on the streets. I feel that 10th is very far because there is need for an immediate action.

You sought for a statement and Sen. Dullo gave some indication of when the statement will come. I can see she is on her feet.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I do agree with the Senator’s sentiment. I am sure that she requires a more comprehensive answer to be able to deal with the issues she has raised here. Therefore, I am requesting her to bear with us so that we can give her something that can answer what she has requested. Thank you.

Yes, Sen. Olekina. WITHDRAWAL OF SECURITY OFFICERS ATTACHED TO RT. HON. RAILA AMOLLO ODINGA AND HON. STEPHEN KALONZO MUSYOKA

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I rise pursuant to Standing order No. 46 2(b) to seek a statement from the Senate Majority Leader regarding the withdrawal of security officers attached to the former Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Raila Amollo Odinga and the former Vice President, Hon. Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka. In the Statement, the Senate Majority Leader should:- (a) explain the security entitlement to the former Prime Minister and the former Vice President as required by law; (b) explain the circumstances that led to the withdrawal of the security details attached to both the leaders; (c) confirm whether the withdrawal of security officers is an intimidation for the candidates of Presidential Elections scheduled for 26th October, 2017; (d) state whether the Government is aware that this action puts the lives of the two leaders in danger; and, (e) state when the security officers attached to the two leaders will be reinstated, considering that the leaders are actively involved in the campaigns for the presidential election slated for the 26th October, 2017. Thank you.

Yes, Senate Majority Leader.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, this is a very important matter. I will be very happy to seek a Statement on the same. I am very excited to hear a confirmation regarding the preparation of the former Prime Minister and the former Vice President for the election of 26th October, 2017.

The Senate Majority Leader, on Tuesday, we shall be on recess; it has to be before that.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I can give a brief Statement on Thursday, so that it can assist the situation for the time being. I will give the more salient issues by this Thursday. Thereafter, the comprehensive answers will follow as to why this happened, whether the leaders are given security officers and so forth. The most important answer that everyone would like to know is whether a presidential candidate of the level of a former Prime Minister and Vice President have security or not? I should be able to answer that by Thursday. Even if they are no longer presidential candidates, it is important to know what they are entitled to in terms of protection, given that they enjoy the position of former Prime Minister and former Vice President. I can come up with an answer by Thursday.

Yes, Sen. Olekina.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am actually baffled by the Senate Majority Leader for trivializing this matter. This is not a joke. This relates not only to one particular person, but former state office holders. It is not in the prerogative of one body to determine when a particular former state officer is entitled by law to have security. Therefore, it is imperative that he provides a full statement on this matter on Thursday because, if you have been coming to the House regularly, you know that we will be on recess until 7th November, 2017. This is not an easy matter.

Yes, the Senate Majority Leader.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as I said, I take this matter very seriously. If my colleague wants an answer immediately, I can give it to him now. However, for that answer to have institutional authority and authenticity, it must be in writing. It must come from the Inspector General of the Police; as to whether or not they have security. We celebrate the Senator for Narok County because he is only one of the three Senators who have not obeyed the orders from Baba not to attend the proceedings of this House. He has used that advantage to protect the interest of his party leaders.

Therefore, for him to say that I do not come to this House is misguided. If you allow me one minute, this is the example we need in this Republic; that leaders even on the Minority side take their job seriously. You can see how the party leaders of NASA are benefiting from their Members disobeying those orders that are illegal to come here

Thank you. Let us move to the next Order.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir. Last week I requested for a statement from the Senate Majority Leader on the issue of security at the Esoit, Naibor and Kimintet ward. It was supposed to be given today.

I will excuse you but next time you will have to be timely. Once we are on another Order, you cannot take us back. Let us proceed. Regarding Order No. 8, the Mover has consulted with me and requested that we defer the matter to another date, which will be communicated to the House.

r. Speaker, Sir, I beg to move the following Motion, with the permission of the Senate Majority Leader:- THAT, AWARE that about 15 per cent of the Kenyan population is persons living with disabilities; APPRECIATING that the Government has taken several measures to avail certain privileges through the National Council for Persons with Disabilities to registered persons living with disabilities; NOTING that the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) is a contributory health insurance cover and the remittance of contributions for persons living with disabilities by Government for the cover, is not among the privileges extended to persons living with disabilities; CONCERNED that most persons living with disabilities have difficulties engaging in gainful income generating activities that would enable them pay the contributions to NHIF, hence are without any medical cover; FURTHER CONCERNED that many persons with disabilities are unable to access medical services leading to high mortality rate;

(Sen. (Dr.) Musuruve): Mr. Speaker, Sir, before I second this Motion, I thank God for an opportunity to be in this House. As a person with disability, it is very difficult to have a voice. So, I thank God for the opportunity of being in this House. I also thank the nominated and elected Senators in this House who represent their various interests groups. I congratulate them. I also thank my party, the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) for giving me an opportunity to represent Persons with Disabilities (PWDs). Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is very difficult for PWDs even to be in a situation where they are in decision and policy making. However, Article 100(a) of our Constitution has allowed me to be here as a woman, and specifically because of Article 100(b) I am also here as someone with a disability. It is an honour that my party nominated me to come here to represent this interest group. For PWDs to be in this House for a first time on an elective position it is very difficult because of societal attitude but once you are nominated it becomes a platform to voice out your issues and see how you can strategize to also come back to the House as an elected Member. This is because of societal attitude towards people with disabilities. So, I thank the party for giving me the opportunity. Mr. Speaker, Sir, when I was affirming and accepting my role as a Senator to represent PWDs. I affirmed that I would voice out issues of disability. Every one of us is a candidate of disability. As long as you are living you cannot count yourself out. So, when we air issues of disability, regardless of your political divide, just know that you are airing out issues that can affect you, your child or anyone who is so significant to you. Issues of disability can befall anyone.

That is why I second Sen. Mwaura on this issue of disability. It is an issue that will benefit everyone either directly or indirectly. These are people who do not have a voice. Since they do not have a voice we have to see how to give them that voice because they are very few in the House or in decision making. Issues of disability are pertinent in this nation. When we look at the ODM manifesto, it comes out clearly that they are keen about issues of disability because they want to be involved in issues of disability and see how to support the vulnerable and the

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I support the Motion for the following reasons. PWDs are already disadvantaged in many ways and so if they can access healthcare, then as a society we are failing. There is need to provide healthcare for PWDs in terms of equality. We owe it to our society to have everybody enjoy the same facilities. Many other people may also not have medical cover, but they probably have other means to pay for the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) cover. For that reason, it is imperative on us to ensure that we provide medical cover for our PWDs. I am sure all of us know somebody or have relatives and friends who are disabled. This needs to be addressed so that as a society, we ensure that we provide

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I rise to support this Motion. This is a very important Motion that affects a very important section of our community. These are communities that for a long time have been ignored. It is high time we came in to support this group. As you know, PWDs are people who cannot engage in gainful employment and are most likely unable to access these medical services. So, I stand here to support this very important Motion that we help our brothers to access the NHIF medical cover.

Mr Temporary Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Motion. Listening to Sen. Mwaura belabour the point, I felt like saying to him that it is very clear that people with disability deserve and have every right to have access to medical cover and everything that other able-bodied Kenyans have. Of course, there are certain injustices and things that happen to people with disability and we are all aware of this. In any situation, there are people that are usually aggressors of that situation, victims and bystanders. In supporting this Motion, this House should ensure that we do not standby as our fellow Kenyans with disabilities, out of no choice of their own, go through immense suffering in every aspect of life, be it access to buildings, much needed medical services and information. This House owes it to Kenyans, for the privilege of representing them, to support this Motion, and as Sen. Mwaura has said, ensure its implementation. Today we were discussing a Petition where a law that was passed was not implemented and therefore, a few years later we are here again discussing this. I urge that we should not just talk but ensure that it will be implemented. This Motion does not just highlight problems but provides very simple and actionable solutions, which include the provision of the National Hospital Insurance (NHIF) cover for our brothers and sisters with disabilities. It should also be noted that minorities are a dynamic situation. Today, people with disability are the minority, but any of us can slip into that minority group anytime, as has been said. I cannot, therefore, think of a better Motion to support both in terms of passing and downstream implementation. I would like to assure this House, the Mover of this Motion and our colleagues who represent our brothers and sisters with disabilities that they can count on me to support not just this Motion but its implementation as well. I beg to support

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I also rise to support this Motion. Just like many have said, it is very important that we support people living with disabilities. As the last speaker has mentioned, anyone can slip into that bracket of minority. I also listened to the Mover of the Motion, Sen. Mwaura, and could see how passionate he was in urging the Government to take care of the people living with disabilities. In the counties we come from, more often than not we are called to go for

to contribute to families who have people living with disabilities. I think it is

The requests are as follows: We have Sen. (Dr.) Milgo, Sen. Mary Yiane, Sen. (Rev.) Waqo, Sen. Kihika and Sen. Kinyua. However, allow me to be guided by the traditions of the House and give preference to the Chief Whip. Maybe she has something up her sleeve.

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I also rise in support of this very important Motion having listened to the Mover, Sen. Mwaura. I know how much the people living with disabilities have so much to overcome in order to get a smoother life. Our Government has done quite a bit to try to equalize things so that the persons living with disabilities are able to get a leg-up a bit. I would also agree that the Government should set aside a fund, just like we have seen with the senior citizens of the country, where there is a fund that helps them get their NHIF dues paid. They have cards to access medical care. That would be important for persons living with disabilities. Once they are vetted and the Government ascertains that they are not able to come up with the payments, then through the fund they can get that access to a lifetime medical attention for them and their families. In the course of working in the county we have come across persons with children living with disability. They have kept them in the homes and are not able to access school because some cannot walk. In some cases, the parents have no wheelchairs and cannot take the day off from work. This is because they need the resources to pay rent. They, therefore, opt to just leave the child at home. It is my belief that we can in many different ways try to make things much easier for the persons living with disabilities. Whenever you walk into some buildings you only see the stairs and wonder how a person, say, on a wheelchair is supposed to access these buildings. Granted now, there are laws and regulations that have come into place for newer buildings to have access. There are a lot of challenges that the persons living with disability encounter in their day to day life. We have also seen how the current Constitution has helped a bit by taking away some of the difficulties that stand in the way of persons living with disabilities enjoying their lives. I support this Motion and hope that we will pass it. I hope that the Government will go ahead and implement it, so that persons living with disability will get cover and access to the NHIF. I hope that it will also set up a pool of funds for those who are not able to pay for it. This will ease the lives of persons living with disability. I beg to support.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I rise to support this Motion. I listened to Sen. Mwaura presenting this Motion with a lot of emotions and I learned that there is some sun screen oil that is very expensive. I know of some persons living with disabilities who got it in their advanced age and they face a lot of challenges in daily lives. Many times, they have to beg for money to cater for their medical care and buy food. Many of them come from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for giving me this chance to contribute to this important Motion. I want from the onset to thank my colleague Sen. Mwaura for having thought deeply on how to help PWDs in our country.

Hon. Senator, hold on for a minute. There is a Member whose card has a technical problem. She inserted it and immediately it failed to read and yet she was on the queue. I urge the Serjeant-at- Arms to assist her. Proceed, Sen. Seneta.

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I want to thank Sen. Mwaura for having thought deeply on how further we can go as a country to assist the PWDs. From his contribution, it is true that the PWDs, especially women and children face a lot of challenges in this country. In some communities, for example, if you have a child living with disability, they see it as a curse or as a punishment. As a parent, you suffer both psychologically and physically when taking care of your child. It becomes very difficult for your child to interact freely with other children in school. It is a pity that women with children living with disabilities are sometimes divorced and end up as single mothers. So, it is very hard to bring up these children single handedly without the assistance of the Ministries concerned. Although we have the National Council of Persons with Disability (NCPD), we still have to do more in terms of consolidating their privileges in the society. For example, we have a few of these people who are beneficiaries of cash transfer and school programmes from Non-Government Organizations (NGOs). We should think of those others who do not benefit from these programmes and enroll them. When registering them, the NCPD concentrates more on the degree of disability which is not very clear. They should do more and ensure that they categorize the PWDs on what benefits they can get depending on the degree of their disability. I support the issuing of NHIF cards to them so that they can access any health facility and get treatment without discrimination. Access to health is a constitutional right of every Kenyan. This card will assist a parent who has to take a child living with disability to hospital every day. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, there is so much that needs to be done for this particular group. We need to mainstream their education. The Education Act provides for them to be integrated in education. However, we still have challenges when it comes

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I stand to support this Motion for PWDs to get access to medical care. I also want to appreciate the Mover, Sen. Mwaura, who passionately brought this to our attention. The reason I support this Motion is because of my personal experience. I have worked as a church minister in the past where I interacted with many families who have children with disability. In the society and even at family level, many PWDs have been isolated. It is as if we have rejected them in our society and even at the family level, many people have rejected the people living with disability because they have been isolated. Most of the times when you go to a place, you will find a person living with disability hidden in a house for 15 to 20 years and nobody wants to talk about the suffering person. That is why I stand to support this Motion. It is our responsibility as leaders to take care of all people and see how best they can be served. In the past and even currently, we have seen that many of them have been misused. If you walk on the streets or any part of Nairobi City, you will see people living with disability on the road, begging. Some people support them while others ignore them. At the end of the day, their take-home is minimal from what they have been given. Many of them have been misused and will continue to be misused. That is why we need to approve this Motion so that they can at least get the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) medical care, which is one of the basic needs that we all have. On implementation, once this Motion is approved, at the National and even at the County level, we urge the people on the ground to make sure they encourage families with people living with disabilities not to be ashamed of them by hiding them. They should come forward, speak about them and see how they can be supported. People with disabilities do not only need medical care; many of them have not even had education. As a result, their young children are suffering and if they can be supported, they can be great leaders in future. Therefore, we need to see how else they can be supported in future so that they can get all the services that other humans get in our society. So, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I stand to fully support this Motion. It is my prayer that we will all be there for the people living with disabilities. Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir.

Proceed, Sen. Kinyua.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I rise to support this Motion. Sen. Mwaura did a very good thing to bring this Motion. However, I want to find out whether this 15 per cent is the correct figure of Persons living with Disabilities (PWDs). This is because many of the PWDs are normally hidden; so, we may not have the correct figures.

I call upon the mover to reply.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. You, I and Sen. Seneta here are used to getting three minutes to speak in our earlier lives in the 11th Parliament. I am surprised to learn that here in the Senate, you have abundance of time to speak to the gallery and, of course, to the nation. When I was moving this Motion, I did not know that I had a record sixty minutes to do that. I was glad to learn from the Clerk at the Table that I was able to speak for twenty five minutes. Even now, I am supposed to respond for thirty minutes. This actually speaks to the fact that we, as Senators, need to research more in order to develop a lot of content so that when we speak, whatever that will be put on record is something that speaks to the real issues of the common Mwananchi . I say this because in the National Assembly – this is not a popularity contest or a supremacy battle – you would rarely have an opportunity to execute your mandate in terms of the issue at hand. I can see Sen. Seneta agreeing with me on this. So, this is a challenge for us to use the time we have for debate in the best way possible. I want to thank all the Senators who contributed to this Motion; including Sen. (Dr.) Musuruve for seconding it; Sen. Halake, Sen. (Rev.) Waqo, Sen. Iman, Sen. (Dr.) Milgo, Sen. Kinyua, Sen. (Dr.) Mbito and also our Majority Whip, Sen. Susan Kihika. I hope I have not forgotten anybody.

Sorry for that; I forgot to mention Sen. Farhiya Haji. I want to thank you all for the robust way in which you have debated this Motion.

Senators, I make reference to Standing Order 73 of this House which provides as follows: “Voting on a matter other than a Bill - (1) When the Senate is to vote on any matter other than a Bill, the Speaker shall rule on whether the matter affects or does not affect counties. (2) The Speaker’s ruling under Paragraph (1) shall be made after the conclusion of debate on the matter but before the question is put. (3) When the Senate votes on a matter that does not affect counties, each Senator has one vote.” I now rule that this matter does not concern counties and, therefore, each Senator shall have one vote. Hon. Senators, pursuant to Standing Order No. 73 (1), this is not a matter affecting counties, therefore, I now put the question.