TOGETHER WE STAND TO SHAPE OUR FUTURE

ADAN BARE DUALE SUPPORTING A MOTION TABLED BY HON AFFEY (DEBATED 10TH JUNE 09)
(APPOINTMENT OF VENUES FOR PARLIAMENTARY SESSIONS ON ROTATIONAL BASIS)

The Assistant Minister for Livestock Development (Mr. Duale): Madam Temporary
Deputy Speaker, I stand to support this Motion.

I have several reasons for supporting this Motion. This is the National Assembly of the Republic of Kenya. Section 58(1) of the Constitution gives leeway and powers to the President of this country--- Once the Constitution gives us that provision, I think we must do justice to Kenyans.

Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I want to take Members back to the so-called constitutional dispensation order that we are talking about. We are talking about devolved resources and equity. Why can we not devolve politics? Why can we not devolve the sittings of Parliament to the regions? Why do we want to give it a white collar tag? Why can we not have the people of Garsen who elected Mr. Mungatana get the opportunity to see 222 Members of Parliament and yourself?
Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I want to say, very clearly, that the Speaker of the National Assembly and even the previous Speakers have never gone to my Constituency, Dujis, which is only four hours drive from here. I want to put it in the HANSARD that even our Temporary Deputy Speaker today, Prof. Kamar, has never been to Garissa or any other part of northern Kenya. We want to give her that opportunity so that hon. Letimalo, who is the Member for Samburu East---
The Assistant Minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs
(Mr. Kipkorir): On a point of order, Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker. Is it in order for the Member to, with a lot of authority, declare that you have not been to any part of northern Kenya?
The Temporary Deputy Speaker (Prof. Kamar): We forgive him for his ignorance.
The Assistant Minister for Livestock Development (Mr. Duale): Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, when I stand in this House, I always check my facts and I am speaking with authority. Coming back to what I was saying, hon. Letimalo comes from Samburu East. Hon. Dr. Kuti, who is my Minister comes, from Isiolo North. In the last one month, the people of Samburu East have undergone agony due to insecurity. Hon. Members were seeing this on television.

However, I can assure you that 80 per cent of Members of this House do not know where Wamba, Archers Post and Merile River is, among other places. I want to say, very clearly, that seeing is better than hearing. We want hon. Members of this august House, who are national leaders, to know every part of this country. I want to give an example. If a Member of this House was appointed the Minister for Health, it would be very difficult for him to know where a health centre in Ijara, Bomet or a school in Garsen is.

On that basis, if what hon. Wamalwa said, if the Executive have their people on the ground, like the DCs and Ministry of Livestock officers--- I remember yesterday I was answering a Question on behalf of the Ministry of Livestock Development. This was about Narok South, a place called Mararianta, Aitong Division in Narok South. I want to say that I have never been to Mararianta or Mara Division as an Assistant Minister. It is high time that we took the leadership of this country throughout the nation.

Secondly, we are talking about reconciliation and national healing. We are talking about building one nation. Just like my good friend, hon. Mungatana’s party has been talking about one nation, one people, this should not be rhetoric. This cannot be one nation if you do not know where Chalbi Desert is. You cannot support national cohesion and reconciliation when you do not know where the Migingo Island is. Is it Migingo or Mijinjo? The island has gone down in history books. Although Members have debated issues to do with this Island, I can assure you that 80 per cent of these Members do not know the way to Migingo. I would need to look for hon. Mbadi to give me the map.

Thirdly, we need to learn about our landscape. We need to appreciate the problems that Kenyans are facing. We are talking about people and livestock dying in the north, in the pastoral areas. We need to quantify that. I want to say that if the Ministers do not go to see these areas--- I am one of the proponents of the parliamentary system of Government because we only see the CEOs, the Prime Minister and others going to Garsen, Dujis and North Horr, to look for votes.

However, once they are in power, even for the area Member of Parliament to see the President, it would take him six months. We want to give an opportunity to the people of this country so that they can see this National Assembly where they are. I want to support the media in this country and the Speaker of Parliament for bringing reforms. Today, Kenyans, those who can afford, and those who can read newspapers and those who can watch television, can see their hon. Members on television.

However, how many parts of this country have television transmission? How much of this country is covered by KBC? How many parts of this country do we have newspapers? I want to say it very clearly that the Members of this House, when they see hon. Duale saying that he comes from Garissa, they think I come from somewhere near Ethiopia. I want to say that Garissa is closer than Eldoret North. It is closer than Kisumu Rural. The moment they see my texture, they look at me as a person from the north and say that this person comes from the second Kenya. They say he comes from the forgotten land where opportunities are not there. How do the people of northern Kenya appreciate the Kenya National Assembly because we are 13 Hon. Members from the region? Parliament today should go and sit in Garissa. How do you want the people of Bura or Garsen to appreciate that the Kenya National Assembly is going to sit in Mombasa?

Parliamentary Committees have never been to Garissa for the last 45 years that the Kenya
National Assembly has been in place. The first Parliamentary Committee that stepped in Dujis last year is the Departmental Committee on Health---. It is not even the august House that has been there. For the first time, the Liaison Committee, representing all the Chairs of the Parliamentary Committees in 45 years, was in Garissa last year. This is unacceptable and ridiculous. You cannot claim to be part of this country and part of this National Assembly and of the 10th Parliament if you can say that you do not know where Wajir bor and Kula Mawe is. I am sure that there is one similar Kula Mawe where Mr. Wamalwa comes from that I do not know. There must be one similar to that Kula Mawe from where my sister, Ms. Odhiambo comes from.

That is, maybe, the Kula Mawe that should be replaced by the Migingo Island. We are talking about a country that claims to be united and saying that in the new presidential dispensation, we want Kenya to be one. Those of us from the north want to appreciate our brothers from the Rift Valley and the cultural, religious and economic divertities of this country.

When we talk about tourism, we must appreciate that there is a potential in the north, in the livestock sector. When we talk about the sugar cane farmers, we want people to appreciate that in Lake Turkana we can do fishing. We do not want our young children in our Kenyan schools to view their colleagues from the other parts of the country as people who have been forgotten.       With those few remarks, I support the Motion.

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