National Assembly · Afternoon Sitting

Deputy Leader of the Majority Party.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table of the House:

Thank you, Deputy Whip of the Majority Party. Next Order.

Hon. Joseph Hamisi, Nominated Member? Hon. Abdul Haro, Mandera South Constituency? Hon. Zamzam Mohammed, Mama Mombasa.

Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I rise to request a Statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs (JLAC) regarding the status of

compensation to the victims of the Owino-Uhuru area, over lead poisoning in Jomvu Constituency. The residents of the Owino-Uhuru area in Jomvu Constituency have endured severe health and environmental impacts resulting from lead poisoning caused by toxic waste from Metal Refinery (EPZ) Limited. On 6th December 2024, the Supreme Court upheld a judgement awarding the residents Ksh1.3 billion in com…

Thank you, Mama Zamzam. Chairman of JLAC, Hon. Murugara? Members of JLAC? Deputy Whip of the Majority Party, inform Hon. Murugara to bring a response in two weeks.

I will do so, Hon. Speaker. Thank you.

Hon. Tungule.

Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order No. 44 (2) (c) , I rise to request for a Statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations regarding the circumstances surrounding the death and burial of the late Jesca Kashutu Ziro, a Kenyan citizen who passed away in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The late Jesca Kashutu Ziro, a re…

The families of the deceased are therefore seeking justice, transparency, and closure. They wish for the exhumation and repatriation of the remains of their loved ones for burial in Kenya. This revelation has caused deep anguish and confusion among the affected families, who have since appealed to the Government for intervention and communication with Saudi authorities to establish how such burial…

Thank you. To which Committee have you directed your Request for Statement?

The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations.

Is the Hon. Member for Konoin present? Hon. Bashir, are you the Vice-Chairman?

[(Hon. (Rtd) Abdullahi Sheikh spoke off the record)]

Thank you, Hon. Chair. We will bring a response in two weeks.

Which Chair are you addressing?

Sorry, Hon. Speaker. We will bring a response in two weeks.

Thank you. Hon. Wakili Muriu.

Thank you, Hon Speaker.

Is Hon. Joseph Hamisi in the House? What about Hon. Abdul Haro? Go on, Hon. Wakili.

Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I rise to request a Statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure regarding the delayed completion of the Kirwara–Kigio–Jogoo–Kimakia Road, Kimatu–Ithangarari–Magomano Road, and Ndiara–Kiriani–Wanduhi Road in Gatanga Constituency. The Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) is mandat…

Kimakia and Kimatu–Ithangarari–Magomano road projects in 2017, the roads remain incomplete to date, and the contractor has since vacated the site without explanation. The situation has caused immense inconvenience to local residents who continue to grapple with poor road conditions that hinder access to essential services and economic opportunities. Similarly, the Ndiara–Kiriani–Wanduhi Road, who…

Thank you, Hon. Muriu. Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure. Give Hon. Dawood the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I wish to first respond to…

You cannot.

Sorry?

The request has just been made.

Sorry. I thought it was a statement.

You are not attentive.

Sorry, Hon. Speaker. We will bring a response to Hon. Muriu’s request in two weeks.

Good. Hon. Denar, are you ready with your request?

No.

We will come back to you. We will now move to responses. Is Hon. Dick Maungu in the House? What about Hon. Zamzam? Hon. Dawood, are you ready to respond to Hon. Zamzam on the safety of ferries?

Yes.

Go ahead.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I also had the response to Hon. Maungu’s request.

[(Hon. Dick Oyugi walked into the Chamber)]

I can see him walking in. Please start with the response to the request by Hon. Maungu. Hon. Maungu, can you tender an apology for your late coming? Give him the microphone. The House starts at 2.30 p.m. Hon. Dick Oyugi (Luanda, DAP–K) : Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I sincerely apologise for walking in late. I was held up somewhere. I am very sorry.

Hon. Dawood, respond to the request by Hon. Dick Maungu of Luanda.

Hon. Speaker, Hon. Zamzam had asked four questions, in which I would like to respond as follows: Hon. Speaker, the Committee received a response from the Ministry of Roads and Transport through the Clerk of the National Assembly, which I wish to make: Regarding the report on the current operational status of the Ferries in use at Likoni and Mtongwe Channels, including the safety audit reports con…

Thank you, Hon. Dawood. Hon. Zamzam, umetosheka?

Asante sana, Mhe. Spika.

hawajahusishwa katika jambo hili. Juzi walitaka kufanya maandamano, nikasema hapana. Nilisema nitakuja kuuliza suala hili ili wapate haki yao. Tunajua miundo misingi ni lazima ili Kenya iweze kupendeza. Lakini, lazima watakaoathirika waitwe kwenye meza ya mzunguko, wapewe haki yao ikiwa kuna jambo linafanyika. Mtu atatoka pale akijua biashara yake imevunjwa, lakini anaenda sehemu nyingine. Wasipo…

Tosha, mama. Leader of the Majority Party.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Sometimes you tend to get lost when you listen to Mhe. Zamzam, because of her very good and fluent Kiswahili.

It reminds you of a book by Shaaban Robert, called Wasifu wa Siti binti Saad.

[(Applause)]

Hey! Sijasoma kitabu hicho. Let me not even attempt to say in Kiswahili what I wanted to say. As Hon. Rahim responds, the Dongo Kundu bypass is a very critical link between the South Coast and the island of Mombasa. However, we also have the ferry connection. The policy that the Government was pursuing in the construction of many of these bypasses is to create convenience, especially to serve the…

Coast, who are more consumers of the Dongo Kundu bypass than the locals. The bulk of the locals use the Likoni ferry. Thank you.

Hon. Zamzam.

Mhesh. Spika, nataka kumweka Kiongozi wa Chama cha Walio Wengi wazi, kuwa barabara ya Dongo Kundu sio watalii pekee wanaoitumia. Wananchi hawakuwa na njia ya kupita, ndio maana walikuwa wanavuka na ferry. Kuna watu wengi ambao wanakaa upande ule mwingine wa Dongo Kundu. Kwa hivyo, hiyo ni barabara ambayo matatu, texi na wageni watatumia. Kama mnataka kutoza pesa barabara hiyo, wekeni express way k…

Hon. Rahim.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I have listened to Hon. Zamzam's queries. As a Committee, we will invite her to attend the Committee meeting when the Cabinet Secretary and Principal Secretaries appear. Secondly, one of the issues that she has talked about is moving the traders. On that one, she will need to contact her governor because once they are moved, it is the governor who will allocate space to t…

Hon. Hamisi Denar?

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Take your seat, Hon. Dawood. You have finished your business.

Hon. Speaker, pursuant to the provision of Standing Order 44.

First, apologise for coming late. I called you three times.

Hon. Speaker, I am sorry I came late. I came to you personally to explain. I apologise.

Hon. Members, going forward, the Leader of the Majority Party has requested me – and I have acceded – to reorganise Business as follows. After Order 8, we shall proceed to Orders 10, 12, and 11 in that order. They are not long Motions. Thereafter, we shall revert to Orders 9 and 11 in that order. The remaining Orders will follow sequentially. Clerk-at-the-Table, kindly note that. Allow me to reco…

Hon. Speaker, I beg to move that the Provisional Collection of Taxes and Duties (Repeal) Bill (National Assembly Bill No. 18 of

Order, Hon. Makilap and your group. That Kamukunji is unlawful. Go on, Leader of the Majority Party.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. For the interest of Hon. Makilap and Hon. Chepkonga, this is also a very short Bill. It seeks to repeal the Provisional Collection of Taxes and Duties Act.

Hon. Saney is the co-conspirator there.

[(Laughter)]

I had not even noticed Hon. Saney, because he has spectacles on. The Bill seeks to repeal the Provisional Collection of Taxes and Duties Act. As Members know, this is a very old piece of legislation that was enacted and assented to in 1959 in pre-colonial Kenya. It allowed the colonial Government to collect taxes ahead of the passage of the Finance Bill. With the 1963 Constitution, the law was st…

Government to collect taxes. Thus, we need to repeal this particular piece of legislation. That is all that the Bill is doing. I do not need to belabour anything beyond that. It is a very archaic piece of legislation. It is out of time and tune with our 2010 Constitution. We seek to repeal it, as it has already been ruled unconstitutional. Hon. Speaker, following the promulgation of our Constitut…

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. The spirit of this Bill is informed by the declaration of the Court. Kenya has the Constitution 2010 that has reorganised the governance of the country and the structure of administration, up to and including revenue raising. Article 95 (4) of the Constitution gives the National Assembly the sole mandate to determine the allocation of national revenue between the two level…

You beg to second.

I beg to second. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

[(Hon. Umul Kheir Kassim and Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah stood in their places)]

Hon. Umul Kheir Kassim and Leader of the Majority Party, take your seats. There being no contributors, I will now put the Question. Clerk-at-the-Table, call out Order No. 13.

[(Question proposed)]

[(Question put and agreed)]

[(The Bill was read a Second Time and Committed to Committee of the whole House)]

Hon. Gikaria, Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Trade, Industry and Co-operatives. Sorry, he is the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Energy.

Hon. Speaker, thank you for giving us the opportunity to table this Report yesterday. Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, this House adopts the Addendum Report of the Departmental

Order, Hon. Gikaria. What are you reading? Just read the Motion as framed in the Order Paper. That is what you are moving, yet you are reading something else.

Sorry, Hon. Speaker. Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, this House adopts the Addendum Report of the Departmental

Very good. Now you can go and say the things you were trying to say.

Sorry, Hon. Speaker. First of all, let me thank the Members of the Departmental Committee on Energy for the good job they did. They dedicated their time to dispense with this very important matter that is before the House. This enquiry had been tabled on 25th November last year, but its Motion lapsed pursuant to the Standing Orders, and that is why I am moving it again. I want to bring to the atte…

We noted that most of these agreements have not been passing through the office of the Attorney-General. We discussed that matter and agreed that the office of the Auditor-General must be involved in every agreement that has to be signed. The Ministry of Energy raised a concern about bureaucracy in the office of the Auditor-General. Following our deliberations, we agreed on a timeframe. The Report…