National Assembly · Afternoon Sitting

Members on their feet, take your seats. Leader of the Majority Party, I direct the House as follows. You will move your Procedural Motion shortly hereafter, and then in Order No. 9, we will debate the Motion on the President’s Address. I will call upon the Mover to reply at 4.00 p.m. This is the fourth day of debate. Be ready to reply at 4.00 p.m., and then we will go to a very short Motion, which…

[(Applause)]

interest are those who represent Kenyans who grow coffee, who used to grow coffee, and who intend to grow coffee. Next Order. Sorry, you have called it out.

Hon. Members, I have two short Messages from the Senate.

The second Message from the Senate is on the passage of the National Construction Authority (Amendment) Bill (National Assembly Bill No.59 of 2022) , and the Cancer Prevention and Control (Amendment) Bill, (National Assembly Bill No.45 of 2022) . Pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 41 (1) , I wish to report to the House that I received two Messages from the Senate regarding the passage o…

Leader of the Majority Party. I see they have written Majority Whip. The Deputy Majority Whip, I thought this is normally...

Hon. Speaker, what was there was laid in the morning. We have nothing to lay.

You have nothing, but what about all these Reports here? There is a Report of the Auditor-General and financial statements of some schools. Do you not have them?

Yes, Hon. Speaker. The Clerk’s Office had duplicated what was laid in the morning, but there is one for the afternoon sitting.

Clerk, the heading on this Paper should always read “The Leader of the Majority Party,” whether it is the whip, the Deputy Whip, or the Deputy Leader of the Majority Party, they all act under the umbrella of Leader of the Majority Party. Go ahead.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I beg to lay the following papers on the Table:

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Social Protection, Hon. Alice.

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

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Health, Hon. (Dr) Pukose.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table: Report of the Departmental Committee on Health on the harmonisation of the proposed amendments to the Assisted Reproductive Technology Bill (National Assembly Bill No. 61 of 2022) .

Is this Hon. Millie Odhiambo’s Bill?

Yes, after we did the winnowing.

Excellent. The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Labour, Hon. Karemba.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table: Report of the Departmental Committee on Labour on the vetting of nominees for appointment as Chairperson and as Members of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following papers on the Table: Reports of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning on its consideration of:

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security, Hon. Tongoyo.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table: Report of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security on the vetting of nominees for appointment as Chairperson and as Members of the Board of the Independent Policing Oversight Authority

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table: Report of the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs on the vetting of nominees for appointment as Chairperson and as Members of the Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ) .

Next Order.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, taking into consideration the findings of the Departmental

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Labour, Hon. Karemba.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, taking into consideration the findings of the Departmental

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security, Hon. Tongoyo.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, taking into consideration the findings of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security in its Report on the vetting of nominees for appointment as Chairperson and as Members of the Board of the Independent Policing Oversight Authority, laid on the Table of the House on Tuesday, 26th November 2024, and pursuant…

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, taking into consideration the findings of the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs in its Report on the vetting of nominees for appointment as Chairperson and Members of the Commission on Administrative Justice, laid on the Table of the House on Tuesday, 26th November 2024, and pursuant to Article 250 (2) (b) of the …

Cap.7F, this House approves the appointment of the following to the Commission on Administrative Justice –

Next Order.

There is a response to the Statement sought by Hon. Rael Kasiwai. Hon. Tongoyo, are you ready? The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security, it is a Statement requested by the Member for West Pokot County. Sorry, she is requesting for a Statement.

She is requesting, Hon. Speaker.

Is Hon. Rael Kasiwai in the House? Statement dropped. Next is Hon. Hon. Gonzi Rai.

Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I rise to request for a Statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy, Water and Irrigation regarding the status on implementation of Makamini Dam Project. The Makamini Dam project is located west of Makamini Shopping Centre in Kwale County and it is financed by the national Government, through …

The Chairperson of the Committee, Hon. Bowen when can you bring a response? Next week?

Hon. Speaker, I will bring the response in two weeks.

You cannot say two weeks, yet you are aware that we are breaking for recess next week.

Hon. Speaker, let me see if I can speed up the matter.

Bring a response by Thursday morning.

Much obliged, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Rashid Bedzimba.

Hon. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I rise to request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Education on the criteria for recognition and equation of certificates and diplomas obtained from schools offering international curricula in the country. There exist two curricula in the Kenyan education system: the international curriculum, and the Compet…

Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Education. Hon. Malulu Injendi are you the Vice-Chairperson?

Hon. Speaker, we will be on recess from next week. So, we will organise a meeting after next week and give a response when we resume next year.

No, you will bring a response next week on Thursday afternoon.

Well guided, Hon. Speaker.

Thank you. Next order.

On a point of order, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, Architect Mulyungi. Give him the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security responded to my request for Statement in April.

Responded?

Yes, he responded but I was not satisfied. I raised it on the Floor of the House and you directed that he comes back with a substantive answer in two weeks. I discussed with him…

You have sat on your rights from April to November?

Hon. Speaker, I will address that shortly. I have been discussing with him and he asked me to resubmit the request for a Statement, again, asking for clarification. I went to the Table Office and they told me that cannot work.

There is no provision under the Standing Orders for re-submitting a request for Statement.

Yes. They asked me to raise it as a point of order on the Floor of the House, so that you can re-direct again. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Tongoyo.

Hon. Speaker, the Hon. Member has admitted that we spoke. I suggested that he re-submits it as a Question addressed to the Cabinet Secretary so that when he comes to the House he can have an opportunity to interrogate him. We agreed that he should do so.

Hon. Mulyungi if you agreed, why are you raising it? There is a microphone where you are seated.

Hon. Speaker, it was a very urgent matter. Considering that questions take a long time to be answered, I thought the Chairperson seeking further clarifications from the Cabinet Secretary would be faster; if you can so direct.

I direct that you engage with the Chairperson privately. If you feel dissatisfied, I will give you an opportunity on Thursday this week to raise the issue on a point of order. Next Order.

Leader of the Majority Party.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Procedural Motion: THAT, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Orders 30 (3) (a) , this House orders that should the time appointed for adjournment of the House be reached before conclusion of business listed as Order No.13, Committee of the whole House, in today’s Order Paper, the Sitting shall stand extended until conclusion of the said business.

Hon. Speaker, I am moving this on behalf of the House Business Committee. Yesterday, we resolved that the Coffee Bill listed as Order No.13, Committee of the whole House, be concluded. As you mentioned, this Bill was on the Floor the whole of last week, from Tuesday all the way to Thursday. We only managed to go up to Clause 11. Last week, the Chairperson of the Committee was here to transact busi…

He is always here.

Yes, he is always here, but the Vice- Chairperson of that Committee is never here. If you count the Members of the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock, a handful are here. I am serving them notice. I know the whips are here and they know what to do. Hon. Millie Odhiambo knows what to do as the Minority Whip. Equally, Hon. Osoro knows what to do with Members of this Committee who ar…

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. You have done what I intended to do tomorrow. If Members from those counties named by the Hon. Speaker are not here to legislate on this Coffee Bill, they should not waste time shouting in funerals and weddings and crying more than the bereaved farmers about coffee prices and the Cherry Fund. The time to act is now. Hon. Speaker, this business will go on until its conclus…

that we can conclude this debate. I want to ask the Chairperson of the Committee to continue with the good work he is doing. This is a Procedural Motion so there is nothing much to say. The Deputy Minority Whip, Hon. Mwenje, Member for Embakasi West, has no single coffee bush but he was here last week. It was very embarrassing on Thursday when we closed business. Only the Chairperson of the Depar…

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Even though I represent a constituency where coffee is not grown, I am a coffee farmer in Kandara and Muranga. To my in-laws who are busy mentioning it, it is important to mention that the biggest consumers of coffee are Nairobians. In fact, the New Kenya Planters Cooperative Union (NKPCU) plant is located outside my constituency. Before that, it used to be in the larger E…

Thank you. Order, Hon. Bisau. Take your seat. It means that you will sit on this particular Bill until you finish or till midnight, whichever comes earlier and, therefore, you should be ready. If you want to know the importance of this legislation, go back to the law books of the 1950’s when the late, Hon. Mbiyu Koinange was prosecuted by colonialists for attempting to grow coffee merely because…

[(Hon. Bisau Kakai stood along the gangways)]

[(Question proposed)]

[(Question put and agreed to)]

On a point of order, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, Hon. Donya. What is it? Is it on the same issue?

Yes, Hon. Speaker. We are discussing the issue of coffee. Two months ago, I requested for a Statement on tea bonuses. I somehow bumped into the answers that the Ministry had given to the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock. If we are promoting coffee, we should promote tea and other cash

crops too. We have to be authentic on what we are doing so that we do not appear as favouring some parts of the country; rather, we should promote all the cash crops grown in Kenya. We are now discussing coffee yet the answers they have given us concerning tea issues that I raised, are fake and opaque.

Order, Hon. Donya. The reason we are now discussing matters coffee is not to the exclusion of any other crop. You just passed a Bill on sugar. Last Parliament, we passed a Bill on Tea. I saw your Statement Request and if it was not adequately replied to, I will direct that Hon. (Dr) Mutunga respond to you, tomorrow, afternoon. Next Order. Hon. Members, before we proceed with the Order, allow me t…

Leader of the Majority Party.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, pursuant to the provisions of Article 127 (2) (c) (i) of the Constitution, this House approves the appointment of Senator Wahome Wamatinga to the Parliamentary Service Commission to fill the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Senator John Nderitu Kinyua. This is a very simple Motion for approval of a commissioner of the Parliamentary S…

Machakos, Kiambu where I come from and Kajiado who have certain issues pertaining to the Members welfare that they have been complaining about for many years. I would want to beg that as much as Senator Wamatinga is coming to the Commission, he does not represent a region. He should not go to the Commission to represent sectarian interests. The Commission must ensure there is equity. What benefits…

Asante mama, Mhe. Zamzam.

Is that from the Leader of the Majority Party. This is the resumption of debate. Who was on the Floor? It seems there was nobody. Hon. Ngusya and Hon. Ikiara, are you for this Bill? It seems you are not. Hon. Johana Ng’eno? There being no interests in debating, I call upon the Mover to reply. Leader of the Majority Party.

[(Hon. Johana Kipyegon spoke off the record)]

[(Hon. Marianne Kitany, Hon. Julius Melly and Hon. Caroli Omondi stood in the gangways)]

Hon. Speaker, could the Members leaving led by the Member for Aldai, the Hon. Melly and Hon. Caroli Omondi kindly take their seats for two minutes for the obvious reasons? Hon. Speaker, I beg to reply. This Bill is a four clause Bill. The Mover of the Bill – who did it on my behalf – Hon. Owen Baya, the Deputy Leader of Minority Party had indicated that I had written to your office seeking to get…

Generals are interviewed and appointed by the Board of Directors of the Kenya Revenue Authority in line with the tenets of corporate governance as it happens in other corporates. In an institution like ours, you are elected as the Speaker by the Members of Parliament who form the Board of Elections. They also elect the Deputy Speaker. It is against this background that I sought to drop Clause 3. …

Hon Caroli Omondi, I can see you are on intervention.

The Member for Molo. As we hold for the Member for Molo, Clerk, the Women Representative for West Pokot had a Statement at Order No.7. The Women Representative for West Pokot, Hon. Kisawai came late. I had directed that her Question be dropped but when she explained, her reasons were legitimate as to why she was late. So, I will give her an opportunity back at Order No.7 to request for a Statement…

[(Laughter)]

Thank you, Hon. Speaker for pronouncing my name correctly. It is Kasiwai Rael. Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I wish to request for a Statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security regarding the security situation in Chesegon area, located on the border between Elgeyo-Marakwet and West Pokot Counties. …

Hon. Tongoyo, when can you bring a response?

Hon. Speaker, I will try to bring it on Thursday afternoon.

So be it.

However, I want to mention one thing. One of the questions was on the long-term strategies. As a Committee, we visited the region extensively some time back.

Say that on Thursday.

Okay.

The next Order had already been called out. Before Hon. Ndindi Nyoro moves the next Motion, I would like to tell the distinguished Member for Kiharu, all chairpersons of committees, and Members who have business on the Order Paper that once your business is on the Order Paper, you are not entitled to think that it will be reached at the time you desire. Your business can be reached at any time. So…

Can the Mover, the Chairperson and Hon. Cynthia Muge approach the Speaker’s Chair. The Leader of the Majority Party may also do so. I am requesting the Leader of the Majority Party and the two Members that are requesting for a recommittal to approach the Speaker’s Chair.

Chairperson of the Committee of the whole House.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I beg to report that the Committee of the whole House has considered the Coffee (Senate Bill No.10 of 2023) and approved the same with amendments. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

The Mover.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to move that the House do agree with the Committee in the said report. I request Hon. Oundo to second the Motion.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I second.

[(Question proposed)]

Hon. Mutunga.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to move that I be allowed to recommit Clause 8 of the Bill.

Who is seconding you?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to move that the Motion be amended by inserting the following words: Subject to recommittal of Clause 8.

Seconder.

I request Hon. Gichimu to second.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I second.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I beg to move that the Motion be amended by inserting the following words at the end: Subject to recommittal of Clause 79. I ask Hon. Majimbo Kalasinga, the Member for Kabuchai to second.

Hon. Majimbo Kalasinga.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I strongly second. For the convenience of the House, question to the proposal to recommit will be put when the matter will next be scheduled for transacting by the House. Hon. Members, this has been one of the most active Committee of the whole House, going late up to now. I want to thank Members for that commitment. Let me also request the Members seeking recommittal to b…

[(Question of the recommital proposed)]