National Assembly · Afternoon Sitting
Tuesday, 26 September 2023
Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah presented the Social Health Insurance Bill, arguing that the current NHIF is inefficient, financially unsustainable and operates as a passive purchaser. He advocated a paradigm shift toward universal health coverage through a sustainable financing model, a Primary Healthcare Fund and integration of community health volunteers to provide affordable, preventive and curative services for all Kenyans, especially the vulnerable. While praising the proposed reforms, he highlighted persistent governance challenges and gaps in the existing system. Members raised procedural concerns that reports were tabled after the sitting began, urging more time for review to avoid misinformation. The debate highlighted the need to extend emergency medical care and social insurance to incarcerated persons and to incorporate traditional health practitioners into the Digital Health framework. Speakers also warned that the new health authority could lead to higher taxes and stressed the importance of proper devolution of resources. Hon. David Ochieng praised the President’s Health Promotion Framework and urged greater investment in disease prevention, while calling for a leaner NHIF board and reduced Cabinet Secretary powers in the Social Health Insurance Bill. Hon. Naomi Waqo strongly supported the Bill, emphasizing its role in creating a Social Health Authority, primary healthcare and emergency funds, and improving universal health coverage and financial accountability.
Hon. Members, congratulations for having quorum at the beginning of the House especially after the recess
[(Laughter)]
Hon. Members, I have two short Communications to make.
Hon. Members, I wish to welcome you back to the House for the Third and final part of the Second Session of this House. It is my hope that in the course of undertaking your parliamentary duties at the constituencies, you have managed to take some rest and also spent quality time with your families. I am also optimistic that you are re- energized and ready to transact business of the House from now…
Hon. Members, take the nearest seats. I have another short Communication.
Hon. Members, I wish to introduce to you a delegation from the County Assembly of Kakamega seated in the Speaker’s Gallery. The delegation comprises Members of the Implementation and Monitoring Committee. They are:
On a point of order, Hon. Speaker.
Hon. Junet, what is out of order? Give him the microphone.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I want to rise on a point of order to raise an issue on the code of dressing.
Code of dressing?
Yes, Hon. Speaker. It is well stipulated in the Standing Orders that when you are coming to Parliament, you must be dressed properly. You must be dressed in a shirt which has a collar with buttons. But if you look at the way Hon. Didmus Barasa is dressed, he can only qualify to be the King of the Bukusu. He is not properly dressed for Parliament. I know we are from recess, but…
[(Laughter)]
Order, Hon. Junet. Thou shall not engage in trivia. If you know the history of Kenya, the Bukusu have never had a king.
[(Laughter)]
Hon. Speaker, I meant to say that it is you, but he is masquerading as one. The King of the Bukusu is known in the country; I do not
want to mention names. This kind of dressing, now that we have come back from recess, is going to allow many Members to dress in any way they feel like.
Which part of his dressing is objectionable?
Hon. Speaker, he is not dressed in a manner that is stipulated in the Standing Orders. He has no tie or collar. You know, he wears shirt size number two, and with his physique, he is not even visible. So, could you make a judgement on this matter?
[(Laughter)]
[(Laughter)]
Order, Hon. Members. Senior counsel Otiende Amollo and one or two others have raised this matter before. As I sit here every other day, I normally notice Members who are inappropriately dressed, but the Speaker does not see or hear unless you bring it to his attention. Now that you have, it is not just about the manner in which the Hon. Member for Kimilili is dressed. Many of you have been persist…
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Allow me to welcome Members back to this last part of this Session. As you have rightly said in your Communication, Members have had time to not only rest, but also reflect on their work as legislators and representatives of their people. I am certain many of them engaged their people during public participation on their NG-CDF proposals. With that, I beg to lay the follo…
Hon. Speaker, on point of order. Please, if you can beg the Office of the Clerk and the Office of the Chief Serjeant-at-Arms, this place is freezing. I do not know why they do not set temperatures at normal room temperature of about 22° C to 24° C. The Deputy Speaker keeps saying it should be set at 22° C to 24° C. I am not coming from any hot meeting as Hon. Junet is suggesting. A number of Memb…
[(Hon. Junet Mohamed spoke off the record)]
Leader of the Majority Party, I had already felt it and directed the Clerk to adjust accordingly.
Hon. Junet, you see.
Next is the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Health, Dr Pukose.
I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table of the House: Reports of the Departmental Committee on Health on its consideration of:
Thank you, Dr Pukose. The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure.
Hon. Speaker, I await the Report. Give me ten minutes.
Is the Report not here yet?
Not yet. Thank you.
Okay. We will stay number C and go to the next Order. Hon Ken Chonga, can you approach the Chair? Go to Roman number two. The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure, are you ready? Not yet? Next Order. Member for Kirinyaga, Njeri Maina. I hope you have recovered from the vicious assault that you had.
[(Tabling of the Report deferred)]
[(Hon. Ken Chonga consulted the Hon. Speaker)]
[(Tabling of the Report deferred)]
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I have recovered, and I am doing much better. Hon. Speaker, I rise pursuant to Standing Order 43 (1) . I wish to make a general Statement regarding the constant delay in the disbursement of the National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NG-AAF) . The National Government Affirmative Action Fund was established with the objective of empowering women, youth and persons wi…
Order, Wa Njeri. I allowed you to make a Statement about NG-AAF.
Hon. Speaker, I just sought to bring Members to speed.
[(Hon. Members consulted loudly)]
Order, Hon. Members. The conversations are too loud. Sit down, Hon. Njeri. If you want to make a Personal Statement in the manner you have now digressed, you must seek the Chairperson’s approval. I have no problem with that. You remember I even came to see you in hospital. So, if you want to make a statement about the attack on you, focus on
that. You cannot use your Statement on the NGAAF to digress into something very personal. The two are not related and so, I disallow you. If you want to make a statement, we can allow you tomorrow. The Hon. Deputy Speaker will be chairing the Morning Session; she can allow you. You can make a personal statement, and when you make it, avoid the temptation to attack people who cannot defend themselv…
Most obliged.
Thank you, wakili. Regarding the matter you raised, Hon. Member for Kirinyaga, we do not need to set up a committee. The Hon. Leader of the Majority Party, you need to listen to this. I order that the Departmental Committee on Social Protection handle any NGAAF-related issues moving forward because this is a social fund, and any issues with NGAAF should go to the same Committee. Any matters relati…
[(Applause)]
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to request for a Statement regarding the projected funding ceilings for the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) for the 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 Financial Years.
[(Applause)]
[(Applause)]
Thank you, Hon. Oluoch. Hon. GK, you are the Chairman of the Committee. Are you in a position to say something, or we give you time?
Yes, I can say something. Thank you, Hon. Oluoch for raising the matter.
Are you saying something preliminary or comprehensive?
I want to say something preliminary, and then I will say something comprehensive later.
Okay.
The supposed hypothetical reduction of the Road Maintenance Levy Fund was discussed in Naivasha by the Summit of Governors. It concerns the 2024/2025 Financial Year, not the current Financial Year. This morning, my Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure met and did a report to require the Director-General of Kenya Roads Board (KRB) and KeRRA to recall that circular because only Par…
[(Applause)]
[(Applause)]
Yes, Hon. Junet.
Hon. Speaker, I congratulate the Chairman for trying to answer the question. He has said here in the House that this matter was discussed in Naivasha in a forum called the Inter-governmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) summit, yet we are not Members of IBEC. Parliament is not represented in IBEC. That is a forum between the Executive and devolved bodies, the county governments. For people t…
[(Applause)]
[(Laughter)]
Hon. Junet, you may be required to pay royalties for intellectual property rights.
[(Laughter)]
Yes, Hon. Ichung’wah, Leader of the Majority Party.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Hon. Junet may not be aware because he was out of the House for some time. Somebody in the House holds the patent for the noisy and messy, and there shall be casualties’ phrase. Just like the Hon. Junet holds the patent of something to do with cows and “Hii imeenda. Hii imeenda”. That was Hon. Junet on something to do with cows.
[(Laughter)]
Is the Chairman, Hon. GK, here? You may now table your Report and give notice of Motion simultaneously.
Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table: Report of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure on its consideration of the proposed reduction of projected ceilings for Kenya Rural Roads Authority for Financial Years 2024/2025 and 2025/2026.
Leader of the Majority Party.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I beg to give notice of the following Procedural Motion.
This is a Motion that you can move without notice. Therefore, move the Motion.
Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, pursuant to Standing Order 30 (3) (a) , this House orders that should time appointed for adjournment of the House be reached before conclusion of the business under Order No.12 in today’s Supplementary Order Paper, the Sitting shall stand extended until conclusion of the said business. Members will note that the House adjourned th…
Hon. Speaker, I stand to second the Motion that has been moved by the Leader of the Majority Party. I urge Members who come from the sugar belt, majorly on this side of the aisle and others on the other side, like Hon. Kangogo, who for the first time is also a sugarcane farmer, to remain in the House for the sake of their people. This Bill affects the lives of sugarcane farmers. Last week, during …
[(Question proposed)]
Hon. Deputy Chairperson.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to report that the Committee of the whole House has considered the Sugar Bill (National Assembly Bill No.34 of 2022) and approved the same with amendments.
Mover.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to Move that the House do agree with the Committee in the said report. I also request Hon. Onyango K’oyoo to second the Motion for agreement with the Report of the Committee of the whole House. Hon. James K’oyoo (Muhoroni, ODM) seconded.
Hon. Melly.
Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I have a recommital of Clause 34 (d) , (e) , and (f) .
Hon. Melly, you need to move properly.
Let me move properly.
Hon. DK. Hon. David Kiplagat (Soy, UDA) seconded.
[(Question proposed)]
Let us have the Member for Seme.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, as we do that, it is important that we get the clear import of those recommittals.
Are you done, Hon. Nyikal?
Yes, Hon. Temporary Speaker. We want to know the import of every clause for recommittal.
That is okay. I will give the Chairman a chance to explain.
Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Clause 6 (1) has paragraphs (a) and (b) . Paragraph (a) has to do with the appointment of the chairperson of the board. We recommit it to indicate that there shall be a non-executive chairperson, appointed by the President, who holds, at least, a degree or its equivalent.
Chairman, just to guide you. Give us only the implication of the recommittal; a simple, straightforward explanation of the three clauses. The other explanation will be done in the next session.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, with respect to Clause 6, the import of the amendment is to increase representation of sugar millers, taking into consideration the representation of private and public companies on the board. Further, it also aligns the appointment of the chairperson in line with the Mwongozo Code. On the other hand, the importance of recommitting Clause 14 is to delete the phrase ‘Salari…
Therefore, I will put the Question. Next Order!
[(Question put and agreed to)]
The Chairman.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to report that the Committee of the whole House has considered the Sugar Bill (National Assembly Bill No.34 of 2022) and approved the same with amendments.
Mover.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to move that the House do agree with the Committee in the said report. I also request Hon. Oundo Mudenyo, Professor, to second the Motion on agreement with the report of the Committee of the whole House.
I second, Hon. Temporary Speaker.
[(Question proposed)]
[(Question put and agreed to)]
Hon. Members, the time being