Tuesday, 25th September, 2018

Hon. Senators, I welcome you all to Uasin Gishu County for this auspicious sitting of the Senate. I also want to thank the leadership of Uasin Gishu County Government – both the Executive and the Assembly – led by His Excellency Governor Jackson Mandago and the Assembly Speaker, Rt. Hon. David Kiplagat for the warm welcome since our arrival and for facilitating these Sittings.

as a means of accelerating development and enhancing collective responsibility. A core creation of this Constitution is the Senate, whose main function is, inter-alia, to represent the counties; and serve to protect the interests of the counties and their governments.

In recognition of the above and in an effort to institute steps towards its actualization, the Senate Business Committee (SBC) on 13th March, 2018, resolved that a Sitting of the Senate be held away from its traditional premises in Nairobi, in Uasin Gishu County in September, 2018, as an innovative way of enhancing interaction between the national and county levels of government.

This inaugural Senate sitting constitutes one of the noble and innovative ways of enhancing interactions between the national and county governments, which are distinct and interdependent. In this manner, we bring the Senate closer to the people both symbolically and functionally.

Specifically, these unique sittings are expected among other things to-

This unprecedented Senate sitting, therefore, provides a unique opportunity for us to engage and harness diverse efforts drawn from various parts of Kenya to make our country better. Let us engage in an open conversation on what needs to be done to achieve prosperity, even as we strengthen our institutions of governance.

Going forward, the Senate will seek to draw valuable lessons to further enrich and improve the subsequent sittings. This is because we believe that county assemblies can complement good legislative practices and hold the potential of directly identifying and addressing the people‟s tribulations, revitalizing hopes and aspirations as well as deepening a democratic, consultative and participatory governance tradition. I dare add that county assemblies are at the core of improving governance in our country.

In conclusion, I want to urge all of us to always remember that we cannot have counties without the Senate; conversely, we cannot have a Senate without the counties. Ours is a symbiotic relationship, one which requires mutual learning, experience sharing and leadership for it to grow and thrive.

I thank you.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me an opportunity to add to your welcome statement and also say, welcome hon. Senators during this historic sitting in Uasin Gishu County Assembly.

On behalf of the people of Uasin Gishu County, the County Government of Uasin Gishu and on my own behalf, I would like to take this singular opportunity to welcome all hon. Senators and you, Mr. Speaker, to Uasin Gishu County.

I will forever be grateful to the Senate for accepting in one voice to bring the first sitting ever outside Nairobi to Uasin Gishu County. I would like to assure Members that the people of Uasin Gishu are very excited about this sitting. We expect them to visit the committees and the plenary sessions during this one week. The Committees that will be going for site visits, I can assure them they will be warmly welcomed by the people of Uasin Gishu. They are very warm and very generous.

I am sure that the Committees have already felt the presence of the public, including professionals. I managed to visit the Committee on Health at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital and we witnessed very wonderful interactions.

The people of Uasin Gishu are looking forward, not only for interactions, but also to contributing to legislations by the various Committees after these sittings. Our farmers are very eager to listen to the Agricultural Committee and the ad hoc Committee tomorrow in the County Hall, the same way our business community is looking forward to the public hearing on the Private Public Partnerships (Amendment) Bill (National Assembly Bills No.52 of 2017) that has been set by the Committee. We are all set and ready.

Hon. Members, may I once more, thank you very much for according us the honour to host you and wish each and every one of you a very successful time in your meetings.

I have never seen in other chambers and in other parliaments before, where it is possible to develop a bi-partisan spirit in order to talk about a Bill or a Motion, or even deciding to come to this county. There was no much debate about it in the Senate, in Nairobi. It was important that we make that point. To emphasize that, when we come to this county, we are coming to the bread basket of this nation.

I pray that one day the sins of the national Government will not be visited to the county governments. In Nigeria now, for example, Lagos is talking about being the third or fourth largest economy in Africa. California prides itself of being the fifth largest economy in the world.

I hope that because of the potential Uasin Gishu County has, and the leadership I have seen here, one day we can pride ourselves that the economy of this county could be larger than the economies of some of the surrounding States. I will not mention which, but which if they want an example of good leadership, should probably come to this county.

Sen. Murkomen, Senate Majority Leader.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Sen. Orengo was not very clear about his closeness to the Senate Deputy Majority Leader.

Order, honourable Members. I wish to make a Communication.

I wish to acknowledge the presence in the Speaker‟s Gallery, this afternoon, of invited dignitaries who have joined us for this auspicious occasion of the inaugural sitting of the Senate outside Nairobi in Uasin Gishu County.

I have invited these dignitaries in recognition of their key role and partnership with the Senate on devolution. I request each one of them to stand when called out so that they may be acknowledged in the Senate tradition.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I will keep it short. Thank you for your Communication. I often quote the Bible. Even in this occasion, I will, where it says: “Where two are gathered in his name, He shall be there”. We are gathered here. Two or three are gathered. I have seen some comments about our visit here.

For those who are in doubt, we had a very successful meeting this morning with the Committee on Finance and the executives of Uasin Gishu and the County Assembly in a make shift tent. We also had a very successful visit to the MTRH. I do not think I would have known that this county hospital serves 21 counties if we had not come to Eldoret. If we had not come here, we would not have heard the things that we did.

The County Public Accounts and Investments Committee (CPAIC) is meeting with governors. They spend money coming to Nairobi, but now we have come here to listen to them. We have demonstrated humility by sitting in the county assembly just like in the Bible, those who come down will be raised by the good Lord. So, have faith.

As the Senate Majority Leader, we should go to Tana River County, Lodwar, and let us cross by boat and go to Lamu County, listen to them and ride on those donkeys so that then, just like in the Bible, „we can be lifted high.‟

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I have no regrets whatsoever coming to Uasin Gishu. I am sure by the time we will finish, devolution will be much better because of the things that we will do here. We should make a resolution to suspend a lot of our sittings in Nairobi and sit amongst the people and leave those ones who think that they are big because they make themselves big to sit in Nairobi. I would choose to sit in Wote and many other places. There is no contradiction with Senators having offices in county assemblies.

To the people of Uasin Gishu, the Home of Champions, may God bless you. The Champions of devolution are in town.

Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I also rise to thank the people of Uasin Gishu.

Order, honourable Members! The speed at which you stand will save you.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, you should tell them that the taller they are, the better. I thank you for this opportunity. It is a great opportunity with the people of Kenya to realise that this House is the House of union - a House that has come to listen to the people.

Earlier on today, I sat across there and the Governor of Baringo sat here, and we got a chance to go through the queries which were raised by the Auditor-General. That gave us an opportunity to speak to them on the importance of them collecting revenue during this time when the national Government is proposing to reduce money which is going to be sent to the county governments. It was important for us to emphasize on the importance of raising local revenue.

It is a shame that during the defunct local authorities, county councils used to raise more revenue than what county governments are doing at the moment. I am quite happy that we have a few governors and speakers of other assemblies.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I hope that next time the Senate will go to Narok.

I now give the Floor to Sen. Dullo on the basis of gender balance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for this opportunity. It is really important for us to also have gender balance.

Let me take this opportunity to thank the Governor of Uasin Gishu and his team and the Speaker of the County Assembly of Uasin Gishu for the work they have done. I remember we were here a week ago when most structures you have seen outside there were not in place. It is important to thank the leadership of Uasin Gishu County for the work they have done to make sure that the Senate sitting is successful today.

Secondly, let me take this opportunity to thank Governor Mandago for the good work. When we came here first, as the leadership of the Senate, he really showed us a lot of humility. He was running up and down to receive us wherever we were and to make sure that we were received well. I think this is very important for the leadership of the counties. They should learn from Governor Mandago as he has received the Senate.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, most people do not know what the Senate does. However, today, the country has seen the work of the Senate. This morning, we interacted with Members of the County Assembly when we heard a Petition from Kericho and Bomet counties in terms of land issues. There is nothing as fulfilling as having service delivery being brought to the people of Uasin Gishu or various counties to deal with the issues first-hand, instead of them travelling to Nairobi.

The Senate Majority Leader has proposed that we should have more sittings like this one to build capacity, interact and share partnership with our colleagues at the county level so that we are able to deliver services as required within the laws of this country.

Finally, we had a sitting this morning with the Governor of Baringo to discuss issues affecting his county. It is interesting to note that the Governor appeared before us with all his senior members of staff. By doing so, he was able to answer all audit queries with the assistance of his staff. This was a learning experience for them.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I would like to appeal to the Senate that, the next sitting should be in a place that is not as rich as Uasin Gishu, and I will propose isiolo County for this matter. I will lobby my colleagues to make sure that we have the next sitting to improve the economy of our country

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for allowing me to join my colleagues.

I must express the fact that in the beginning, I had some reservations about our coming here not for anything, but because of the cost that is going to be involved. However, this morning, I had an opportunity to attend a meeting of the Committee on Finance and Budget. I had also an opportunity to attend a meeting of the Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations.

Our committee on security had a meeting with our colleagues; the MCAs of the Committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations. I think we would have not got this opportunity if we had stayed in Nairobi

Mr. Speaker, Sir, from my own words, I will be supporting that the Senate should sit outside Nairobi and that time has come to hold a sitting in northern Kenya where they have been marginalized for many years. I invite you to Garissa to come and drink camel milk.

Finally, I want to apologize to His Excellency the Governor of Nandi, Sen. Sang, somebody with whom I have related very well when we were at the Senate, for having

not gone to Nandi yesterday because I arrived late, but I want to assure him that I will be visiting his county tomorrow.

Thank you very much.

Next Order.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. Before I read the Petition, I also want to join my colleagues as a good neighbor to welcome Senators to Uasin Gishu County. They are in The City of Champions and we, alongside Elgeyo-Marakwet are the source of champions.

Secondly, I want to say that it is an honour to be in Uasin Gishu for the “Senate Mashinani”. I want to tell the critics; the naysayers; the prophets of doom, that the Senate is not going anywhere because it is the engine of devolution.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, secondly, allow me to read the Petition to the Senate concerning the operations of Karebe Gold Mining Limited in Tinderet Sub County, Nandi County.

I wish to draw the attention of the Senate to the following-

Hon. Senators, pursuant to Standing Order No.231, I shall now allow comments, observations or clarifications in relation to the Petition for not more than 30 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I rise to support this Petition by my good neighbour and friend, Sen. Cherargei. This is something that he is extremely passionate about.

During my first interaction with him, once he was elected to the Senate, he began canvasing issues around Chemase Gold Mining. On many occasions, before I could get a good grasp of his name, I used to refer to him as the “gold Senator”, not because he loves the gold that is being produced but because of the passion that he has for the people that live around the area and the suffering that they have had to endure due to “investors”.

We look at them as investors but they are not. The truth of the matter is that these are people who have come to our country because of the weakness of our laws. They impoverish our nation and take away natural resources with very little benefits being extended to the people that live close by. The Committee that will handle this matter should get to the details of the concerns that are being raised by residents of Chemase. Let them find justice in this House.

There is a concept that I do not seem to agree with. I say this because this morning we had a chance to listen to a Petition from residents of Kericho County about what should happen because their land was taken by colonialists. As a people, they have never been compensated and up to date, there is nothing they enjoy from their land. During contributions, you could hear a certain line of thought being pushed, especially by our colleague Senators from the legal fraternity, that there are legal issues around it that we cannot address as a Senate.

The sanctity of the Senate and Parliament as an institution cannot be second-guessed. The idea of Parliament is the gathering of people of Kenya. There is nothing under the sun that is greater than the very people who own a particular republic.

I challenge the committee that will handle the matter to get to the root cause of the matter. They should give us hard-finding solutions and proposals that even the ownership reverts back to people of Chemase. There is nothing that is wrong with that. It is possible for them to run it, own it and be successful.

With those many remarks, I beg to support.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, thank you very much for this opportunity. You know how passionate I have been on matters of natural resources. During the Eleventh Parliament, we had a Bill on natural resources that the whole Senate supported and it would have solved exactly this problem that we are talking about. The Bill proposed structures that would have ensured that counties and communities reap from natural resources put there by God.

There is no county without natural resources. The Committee that was formed visited nearly all the counties. If I can remember, we had Sen. Murkomen, Sen. Wako and many others. We worked like we had never worked before for two years.

We as the Senate represent counties and their interests. Those interests include human beings having the dignity to live in the counties, work for those counties and be remunerated properly for the work they do in the counties. We have heard that they work under harsh conditions or the owners are not compensated. The rights of the workers are not taken care of yet structures can be put in place to ensure that this does not happen.

Mr. Speaker Sir, it is not difficult to come up with a fiscal regime that ensures that right from the top to the bottom or from the bottom to the top, that a more organized mechanism is put in place to ensure that communities are compensated. It is good for the communities‟ natural resources to be exploited. However, it should not become a curse like in the case of Nigeria where we had the oil curse.

People should be able to consider the resources that they have. For example, in Rwanda, they have the Kwita Izina. They look at the baboons in that area and know that their roads have been constructed because of those baboons. It is not asking for too much to make this happen. This is to happen by ensuring that that these structures are put in place.

Various Bills have come up after the Natural Resources (Benefits Sharing) Bill. Shortly, this Bill is coming up again. We have tried to address the issue of “Money Bill” and created another authority, rather than the one we had, so that we ensure that at the end of the day, the Revenue Collection Authority (RCA) is put in place to ensure that revenue is collected and distributed.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, there are many Bills in the National Assembly that have been termed as “Money Bills”. As the Senate, what we strive for are our communities. It behoves our work when we have sat in this Senate and our communities cannot be helped. The Natural Resources (Benefits Sharing) Bill was clear about the proportions to be given including 20 per cent for the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) and 80 per cent that would go to the national fund. Within the 80 per cent, 60 per cent was going to the counties and 40 per cent was going to the communities.

Within those communities, 40 per cent was going to specific communities. That way, the cries that I heard from the old men and women in Mzima Hills in Kwale County to the point that they felt so disenfranchised--- They said: “Can we just have these minerals remain in those mountains, if need be.” Today, in a WhatsApp message that is circulating, information is being given about the amount of money that is being reaped by companies that are exploiting natural resources.

I strongly support this Petition. Karebe Gold Mining Limited (KGML) has a case which extends to many other counties. These questions have to be put on the table and answered and proportions given out.

After the Natural Resources (Benefits Sharing) Bill, other Bills have looked at the whole idea of compensation and benefits sharing right from the national level to the community and given proposals. This is a good thing. However, even the Mining Act 2016 does not have those provisions.

It simply says that for a certain amount, distribution of 25 per cent will go up to the lowest level, which is the community and 75 per cent remains in the national Government. For as long as we have Bills that give a provision but do not put adequate structures to ensure this happens, then it is all in futility. We need communities to be happy and not see natural resources as a curse. We need the KGML to be vindicated.

Thank you, I support this Petition.

Mr. Speaker Sir, I rise to support this Petition and commend the courageous Senator for Nandi County. I have seen him fighting this case in the media. However, this has been going on for a long time.

For this Senate, on a matter like this one, we can only resort to going to a committee. In this regard, let me address Sen. Wako, who was the Attorney-General and the Senior Counsel, my friend, Sen. Orengo. When the Constitution was being made, that was the right time to empower this House such that on matters like this, we can make decisions that are more or less paralegal. However, we are reduced to just maybe making decisions and one goes the long route. The Senator has said there is an old man here who has come all the way because of the pain that he has been going through. Justice has to do with the time it is delivered.

If the Senate is empowered, there are many things that it will streamline in this country. At this juncture, if the courageous Senator had been given the oversight funds, maybe he would have gone and employed the best lawyers like Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. to represent these people. That is what is required. Therefore, we look forward to that time. Before then, I call upon you to ask the committee that will look into this matter to see the inhumane issues and expedite the Petition.

Secondly, let me also put it here that we are not here to scare away investors. We are here to work in a civilised manner with any investor who will come to Kenya, benefit the local people and also for him or her make whatever money he or she is making. However, it is deplorable and inhuman that one is making billions and cannot afford a paltry sum to keep the community in a way that they will feel that they have good neighbours.

Therefore, let us call upon ourselves, including the other Legislature, to expedite laws and make the time for justice less. We are fighting corruption in this country. The public is getting fatigued when cases get into a merry-go-round and take so long. We need to come up with a legislative mechanism where once it is decided, it is done quickly.

With those remarks, I support.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker Sir. This Petition is a wake-up call to many issues. I urge ---

Order, Sen. Kinyua.

Proceed, Sen. Wetangula.

Mr. Speaker Sir, whichever committee you will commit this Petition to, should go beyond listening to the complainants and coming to table a report and we forget about it. This Petition reflects on many issues that we have noted in this country.

One may recall, in Lolgorian in Narok County, there was a South African miner who literally used to park material mined in raw form in containers and take to South Africa, purportedly for research. Everybody knew he was carrying away gold and all other minerals attendant to gold. We need to ask ourselves why in this late hour in our history, we do not have a law that protects communities, investors, interests of the national Government and those of county governments.

We have just come from Australia with the Committee on Finance and Budget led by Sen. (Eng.) Mahamud. We learned from Western Australia that mining is owned by the counties or provinces where the mines are domiciled.

Ferdinand Waititu and Gov. Mike Mbuvi Sonko can have something to learn from the young Gov. Sang; it is very important.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. Before I contribute on the Petition by the good Senator for Nandi, I want to express my gratitude to the County of Uasin Gishu, the home of champions, although yesterday they failed to rise to the occasion when our first team thrashed them two goals to nil. It is only in the second half, when we did a ceremonial substitution, where Sen. Haji was the defender and Sen. (Prof.) Ongeri was the striker, and that is how they managed to score some flimsy goal.

On a point of information, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of information, Sen. Haji?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, by the time Sen. (Prof.) Ongeri and I left, we had scored two goals against one.

Sen. Malalah, do not misinform the House.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I think Sen. Haji is a wonderful defender. He came into the match and never touched the ball, but he was the defender.

What is your point of order, Senate Majority Leader?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, is Sen. Malalah in order to, first of all, introduce a debate that was concluded by the Speaker at that time? But most importantly, how did I demean Sen. Malalah, when I called him “former MCA and the Deputy Minority Leader? I thought that by doing so I was actually elevating the position of an MCA to a higher level; that you can rise from being an MCA to a Deputy Minority Leader. I thought that was a good thing.

I will check the records. If that is what you said, then Sen. Malalah has no reason to complain.

Proceed.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Bible says “forgive and forget.” So, I hereby forgive Sen. Murkomen for those reckless utterances.

What is your point of order, Sen. Murkomen?

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir. First of all, I do not know which Bible Sen. Malalah is reading. I thought you forgive and remember that you forgave. But more importantly, the Senate Majority Leader cannot make reckless remarks, particularly, if it is in the person of Sen. Murkomen, who has been the critical defender of MCAs, from the time Sen. Malalah was elected. That is why my defence enabled him to come to this House.

I think my record speaks for itself and Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. will bear me witness. Likewise, Gov. Sang, in the Gallery, and the former Senator for Mombasa, Sen. Hassan Omar, will bear me witness. This is because the three of us did a lot of work to protect the likes of Sen. Malalah and now they are enjoying that protection in this House. Can I really make reckless statements?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, moving forward, I stand to support the Petition by the Senator for Nandi. This matter is not about Nandi County only. In Kakamega County where the real gold is found, our people are being exploited.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, when one goes to the village of Rosterman, we have a company which came to do leaching using cyanide. For those who understand chemical terminology, cyanide is a combination of carbon atoms bonded with triple nitrogen. It is very poisonous. The leaching company is using cyanide or cynamide or whatever---.

Order, Sen. Malalah! Use the correct terminologies. Do not mislead the House.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, it depends on which school you attended. The most important thing here is the contamination of Isiukhu River. The company is using the river to do leaching which is poisonous. It is killing our animals and people downstream. This Petition is not limited to Nandi County.

On the issue of communities benefitting from mining companies, the Mining Act is very clear on the issues of Community Development Agreement (CDA) . Why are we ignoring that aspect of CDA? Our county governments have the mandate for licensing. Before they license any company, I urge them to make sure that we have an elaborate CDA. It is sad that the poorest village in Kakamega County is the one that has gold. The poorest constituency by 2013 was Ikolomani, yet it has more gold than Nandi County

And bullfighting!

Yes, bullfighting. We want the people of Ikolomani to get the fruits of mining by Acacia Company. We want the people of Rosterman in Kakamega County to get the fruits of mining from Azima Contractors.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the people who are supposed to help us benefit from mining are governors. We want to know how much money Kakamega and Nandi counties collected from mining.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Sen. Khaniri?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I rise on a point of order pursuant to Standing Order No.229 (h) . The Petition was very clear. In our rules, the petitioner must have prayers. Is the Senator for Kakamega, honestly, in order to hijack a very genuine Petition that is genuinely before this House to be addressed, to include other issues that are not represented in the prayers of the Petition? Those are new prayers he is putting forth while the prayers of the Petition are very specific.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Sen. Dullo?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, is it in order for Sen. Malalah to say that governors are the ones to be blamed for mining, yet the licensing of mining is a national Government function?

I thank you. The Senate Majority leader (Sen. Murkomen) :

He is still learning.

He is still learning.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, that is why I said that it is important that before one becomes a Senator, he or she goes through the county assembly as a Member so that one understands issues of the county.

What is your point of order? The Senate Majority Leader (

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I simply said that for mining licenses, it is the mandate of county governments. Sen. Murkomen, I would like to encourage you to kindly vie for the seat of Member of County Assembly (MCA) in Elgeyo-Marakwet County in 2022, so that you understand who issues trading licenses.

Is Sen. Malalah in order to completely mislead the House about mining licenses when we know that this House passed a very important law; the Mining Act that has responsibility on mining? These are some of the things I was raising.

Order, Sen. Malalah! The more you continue talking, the more you are confusing yourself. You are safer seated.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I simply said that for mining licenses, it is the mandate of county governments. Sen. Murkomen, I would like to encourage you to kindly vie for the seat of Member of County Assembly (MCA) in Elgeyo-Marakwet County in 2022, so that you understand who issues trading licenses.

What is your point of order, Sen. Wetangula?

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Sen. Sakaja?

Order, Members. As I mentioned at the beginning, we have extremely weighty matters still coming up for debate. You will have an opportunity to contribute unless you want to contribute to these ones that may not look very---

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I have two concerns. Is it in order for us to use the Standing Order and points of order to bring in arguments and debate?

Secondly, I have noticed that since we started this sitting, we have not realised that there is a backbench in this House because not a single Member from the top row has been allowed to speak.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I have constantly been on my feet on all the points. We must remember that in as much as Sen. (Prof.) Kamar is welcoming us here, I am the one who hosts you in Nairobi. Therefore, give me an opportunity to also contribute to the matter before us.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. We should acknowledge the presence of Mr. Mandago who I understand is in the House.

I was about to make that communication.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Sen. Wako?

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

utilise the environment and natural resources for the benefit of the people of Kenya”.

The definition of natural resources, other than the Constitution, includes minerals. When it comes to these resources, the Constitution has provided that the county assembly can also be concerned with agreements relating to utilisation of natural resources. If I understood my dear friend, Chairman, right, that is exactly what was said---.

Sen. Wako, you have been heard---

utilise the environment and natural resources for the benefit of the people of Kenya”.

The definition of natural resources, other than the Constitution, includes minerals. When it comes to these resources, the Constitution has provided that the county assembly can also be concerned with agreements relating to utilisation of natural resources. If I understood my dear friend, Chairman, right, that is exactly what was said---.

Sen. Wako, you have been heard---

If Sen. (Dr.) Zani‟s Bill which touches on natural resources is directly relevant to the Petition before you in as much as it also concerns the sharing of that---

The devil in Africa today is that, the people on whose property the various mineral resources exist have been so much misused by these investors that the environment where they live has been destroyed. They do not benefit from it. That is why sometimes it is said that natural resources in Africa are a curse.

Order, Sen. Wako.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Sen. Sakaja?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I beg that you consider the views of the Chairperson of the Committee on Labour and Social Welfare as you make your determination. What Sen. Wako has said is indeed true. There are certain elements that touch on different committees but that is also true for everything that comes before this House. There is no one matter that you will deal with that is squarely within the purview of one committee. There is always a legal aspect or a matter touching on a different Committee.

When I heard this Petition, issues of how workers are treated, labour laws, protective gear, the working environment and an issue that I am dealing with on the matter on SGR came to my attention. Many times we look at investors with rose-coloured glasses at the expense of Kenyans and a first class country can never have a second class citizen. That is something that we are dealing with.

However, as the Chairperson of the Committee on Labour and Social Welfare, I am extremely hesitant to deal with a Petition through a joint Committee. The logistics of getting quorum of two committees, the scheduling and the other matters before the Committees never allows us to fully pursue a matter. I have been in many joint committees.

If we feel that the bulk of this matter is environmental, I would like to sit on the Committee on Lands, Environment and Natural Resources to deal with it. We can come in and assist on aspects that touch on labour. If it is mainly labour, let my Committee deal with it then the other Committee can come in, but the logistics of joint committees are very inconveniencing to us, as Chairpersons, and to the Members of these Committees.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Senator?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, once you have made a ruling on a particular subject that is on the Floor, that is final. I do not see the reason my colleagues keep on going to and fro, whereas you have made a ruling on this matter. Is it in order? Can we move on?

I have directed that it goes to the Committee on Labour and Social Welfare.

Next Order. We have a Supplementary Order Paper. We will now turn to the Supplementary Order Paper.

Are we all there?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, once you have made a ruling on a particular subject that is on the Floor, that is final. I do not see the reason my colleagues keep on going to and fro, whereas you have made a ruling on this matter. Is it in order? Can we move on?

I have directed that it goes to the Committee on Labour and Social Welfare.

Next Order. We have a Supplementary Order Paper. We will now turn to the Supplementary Order Paper.

Are we all there?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I beg to give Notice of the following Motion:

COGNIZANT THAT Eliud Kipchoge broke the world marathon record held by a fellow Kenyan athlete Dennis Kimetto during the 2018 Berlin Marathon held on Sunday, 16thSeptember, 2018; AWARE THAT Kenya has earned international respect in athletics over the years courtesy of such hard work and stellar performance by our athletes in both on and off the field events which has brought us together as a country and encouraged cohesion in line with our National Anthem; FURTHER AWARE THAT athletics has created significant economic opportunities and infrastructure in the Rift Valley creating thousands of jobs for many would be jobless youth, thus engaging them in a productive and meaningful manner for purposes of nation building; FURTHER AWARE THAT the youth are a critical component of the Big 4 agenda by the government and that development of athletics will lead to more productivity by a significant population of the youth who constitute a formidable part of the demographic structure of the country; COGNIZANT THAT more support from the government is needed to fight the doping menace that has bedeviled our athletes and to encourage and motivate young and upcoming athletes to strive for excellence untainted by the vice; NOTING THAT performances by our sportsmen and women are indeed commendable and deserve special recognition, the Senate now commends Mr. Eliud Kipchoge for his excellent performance in the Marathon and specifically for breaking the world marathon record and urges the National Government to-

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr.?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I would hate for the Senate Majority Leader to get into trouble with the women of this county. Where is Gladys Cherono? This Motion should be amended to include Gladys Cherono for us not to offend the women. There might be some trouble for the rest of the week.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I only gave the example of Eliud Kipchoge because he broke the world record. In my moving notes, there are many other Kenyans who are holding world records including Daniel Komen and David Rudisha. When I come to the moving of those notes, we will recognise all of them.

The uniqueness of Eliud Kipchoge in this Berlin Marathon was the world record for there are many other marathons that take place every year.

Well said.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker, Sir.

What is your point of order, Sen. Malalah?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Minority Whip on the issue of---

You are out of order, Senator.

I wanted to question---

Order! Order! Sen. Malalah, seemingly since you came to Eldoret, you have---

Order! Order, Sen. Malalah!

Order! Order! Sen. Malalah, seemingly since you came to Eldoret, you have---

Where is the Chairman of the Committee to respond?

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity to request the Statement. However, before I do that, I would like to join you in thanking the County Government of Uasin Gishu for hosting us in this County. We appreciate the leadership and the work they have done for us to enjoy their facilities.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, pursuant to Standing Order 48, I rise to seek a Statement from the Standing Committee on Finance and Budget on the implementation status of the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) circular Reference CR/FA/01/Vol. 1122 dated 28th June, 2018, regarding recommendations on the County Government Recurrent Expenditure Ceiling for the Financial Year 2018/2019.

In the Statement, the Committee should-

increase in operations and maintenance of county assemblies as contained in the Gazette Notice of 2018---

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I beg to reply. In the current financial year, as was in the last financial year, the current expenditure for county executives and county assemblies were actually segregated and dealt with. The circular which the hon. Senator is referring to was issued during the discussions we had with the CRA during the budget making processes.

In fact, during that process, the CRA recommended a figure of Kshs30, 646,550,421 to be allocated as recurrent expenditure for county assemblies. However, after looking at it at length, we varied that figure and allocated an extra of Kshs1.7 billion to county assemblies across the country. This was meant to deal with issues of the

Mr. Speaker, Sir, this was also meant to deal with committee sitting allowances – which were actually not taken into account by the CRA – to be based on 12 months and not 10.5 months, as already learnt. Therefore, this matter was exclusively dealt with during the budgeting process.

In fact, if the hon. Senator remembers, Schedule 4 of the current County Allocation of Revenue Act (CARA) details both the recurrent expenditure ceilings for the county executives and for the county assemblies. There is nothing beyond that, which we can actually deal with in terms of county assemblies. As far as we know, the assemblies are one entity and both the nominated and elected members enjoy the same rights. They are all entitled to get similar offices and allowances.

Therefore, as the Committee of Finance and Budget, we are not aware of any discrimination against nominated Members.

Thank you. I beg to reply.

I cannot see anybody on their feet. What is it Sen. Sakaja?

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Is the Chairman of the Committee on Finance and Budget in order to purport to reply to a Statement that has just been given? It is very clear that what the Senator is asking for is not about the allocation but the implementation status. We know very well that as a Committee Chair, on top of the theoretical information that you have on how much was allocated, you are supposed to go and see if it is being implemented in the counties.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I know of many county assemblies, including my County Assembly of Nairobi, where nominated Members do not have office space and staff. I also know of many county assemblies where nominated Members are treated as second class legislators, forgetting that many great Kenyans – including His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta; yours truly, Sen. Sakaja Johnson and Sen. Moses Wetangula – were once nominated Members.

I cannot see anybody on their feet. What is it Sen. Sakaja?

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Is the Chairman of the Committee on Finance and Budget in order to purport to reply to a Statement that has just been given? It is very clear that what the Senator is asking for is not about the allocation but the implementation status. We know very well that as a Committee Chair, on top of the theoretical information that you have on how much was allocated, you are supposed to go and see if it is being implemented in the counties.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I know of many county assemblies, including my County Assembly of Nairobi, where nominated Members do not have office space and staff. I also know of many county assemblies where nominated Members are treated as second class legislators, forgetting that many great Kenyans – including His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta; yours truly, Sen. Sakaja Johnson and Sen. Moses Wetangula – were once nominated Members.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, is it in order for the Chair to dismiss the issue just because he knows he passed the budget, yet the Statement is clearly asking about the implementation status?

Very well Sen. Sakaja---

Mr.Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Chair should move beyond the theory, go to the ground to ask county assemblies and make sure that the budget is followed.

Very well, you have made your point and you have declared interest.

What is it Sen. M. Kajwang‟?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, we have been through this, where a Statement is requested and a Chairman responds immediately. We have said that if it is possible for that to happen, then it will be very efficient; but it should not compromise quality and content.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, we need to have a broader interpretation on this issue of circulars, because our job is to legislate. However, there are also other circulars which bring certain matters into effect beyond our legislative duties. For example, there is a circular at the county level on which this request for a statement has been raised; there is also a circular on the residences of speakers; there is another circular in force right now that allows governors to invest in education infrastructure in primary and secondary schools.

Is it, therefore, in order for the Chair to purport to give a response without doing a thorough assessment of these issues of circulars and issues of legislation through circulars?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, we are complaining about legislation through presidential memoranda; we are getting another tyranny of circulars in this country.

Very well, Sen. Kajwang‟. Order, Senators! Chairperson, you have been asked whether you want to give this answer now on the spot or whether you want more time.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I will make it short. Your direction is important. In terms of budget implementation, we have somebody who does the budget implementation. The quarter had started. Therefore, you cannot check the implementation. We have just passed the cash disbursement schedule which will dictate whether they have implemented that budget.

Although, you have put the Chairperson on the spot, the correct position is that, at the end of the quarter, you have budget implementation but what is more difficult is that, the statement is general. We are not certain, as Members of the Finance Committee, which county the Senator is referring to. It could be one nominated Member of County Assembly (MCA) in one county.

So, please assist this Committee so that we do not enter into a wild goose chase.

Chairperson, what is your recommendation? How do you want to dispose of this matter? Please do so, briefly.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I will make it short. Your direction is important. In terms of budget implementation, we have somebody who does the budget implementation. The quarter had started. Therefore, you cannot check the implementation. We have just passed the cash disbursement schedule which will dictate whether they have implemented that budget.

Although, you have put the Chairperson on the spot, the correct position is that, at the end of the quarter, you have budget implementation but what is more difficult is that, the statement is general. We are not certain, as Members of the Finance Committee, which county the Senator is referring to. It could be one nominated Member of County Assembly (MCA) in one county.

So, please assist this Committee so that we do not enter into a wild goose chase.

Chairperson, what is your recommendation? How do you want to dispose of this matter? Please do so, briefly.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this is in relation to the matter which the Member asked in terms of the ceilings for county assemblies. After discussing with the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) , we struggled to make sure that the budget ceilings for expended items of recurrent for county assemblies were done and put in Schedule Four of County Allocation of Revenue Act (CARA) which is the law in place now. It is also in the Cash Disbursement Schedule which we sent the other day.

So, as far as the Committee is concerned, this matter has been dealt with. We increased the figures CRA brought to us in terms of expenditure for county assemblies by an extra Kshs1.7 billion, considering the longer sitting period, allowances for sitting and the recurrent expenditure. The assemblies were dealt together as a one entity. I am not aware of discrimination.

As explained by a Member of my Committee, Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Junior, we do not know whether the matter refers to all the 47 county assemblies.

Chairperson, is it your position that you have answered the questions that were raised?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am not satisfied.

What specific information do you require him to look for?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, there are two requests in the Statement.

Sen. Naomi Masitsa, are you satisfied with the answer from the Chairperson?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am not satisfied.

What specific information do you require him to look for?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, yes, it is related to the Committee that is headed by engineer. Allow me to seek your directions and maybe also from the Chairperson of the Committee on Finance, reason being that there is a matter that was committed before his Committee. Up to now, I have never known the status of that matter.

Which matter?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is the County Ward Development Fund Bill. Allow me to explain.

Order, Senator. If you want a statement on the status of the Ward Development Fund Bill, you know what to do.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I do not know. I seek your direction.

Which matter?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, allow me to explain. The reason I asked that---

Either you know what to do or you ought to know.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have, in an informal manner, been asking people in the corridors. I have written an official letter to the office of the Clerk inquiring the status of ---

Order, Senator. Resume your seat. You will get help from the Clerk-at-the-Table. They will advise you on how to pursue that matter.

Thank you, hon. Senators. That was the only Statement on the Order Paper. What is it, Sen. Sakaja?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am sorry to take you back. It is on the same. Just as Sen. Kang‟ata has asked, one of the first statements that were made in the Senate was the statement I issued requesting information from the Committee on Finance on Kshs58 billion owed to Nairobi County Government. We exist to protect county governments. I have also never received any report on that Kshs58 billion.

Further to that, when I gave the first state of the county address about Nairobi County, I raised issues on revenue collection and asked that the Committee – there was direction from the Speaker‟s Chair that the Committee on Finance and the Committee on

Either you know what to do or you ought to know.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have, in an informal manner, been asking people in the corridors. I have written an official letter to the office of the Clerk inquiring the status of ---

Order, Senator. Resume your seat. You will get help from the Clerk-at-the-Table. They will advise you on how to pursue that matter.

Thank you, hon. Senators. That was the only Statement on the Order Paper. What is it, Sen. Sakaja?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am sorry to take you back. It is on the same. Just as Sen. Kang‟ata has asked, one of the first statements that were made in the Senate was the statement I issued requesting information from the Committee on Finance on Kshs58 billion owed to Nairobi County Government. We exist to protect county governments. I have also never received any report on that Kshs58 billion.

Further to that, when I gave the first state of the county address about Nairobi County, I raised issues on revenue collection and asked that the Committee – there was direction from the Speaker‟s Chair that the Committee on Finance and the Committee on

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is a relief to me because it means I can also do away with all the statements I have been working on in my Committee on Security and the Committee on Labour and Social Welfare. I will bring the statement again with regard to Nairobi on Kshs58 billion and Revenue Collection. I am sure the Chairperson will be so kind to give us answers.

Chairperson, have you noted? Do you want to say anything?

Yes, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. On the same note, in the old regime of answering statements, at some point we stopped. Now that we have a new process, what happens to the pending statements that were requested? Have they lapsed? Do we start afresh? We want guidance from the Chair.

There was a substantive ruling on this matter. When you change a law, it replaces an old one and the new one takes its place, unless it is saved in transitional clauses.

What is it, Sen. (Dr.) Zani?

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Is Sen. Sakaja in order to refer to the fact that some of the statements might have been dropped as a result of the changes that have been made as a relief? It should be a pleasure for the Chairperson of any Committee to bring all the statements that are sought. They help us to answer questions from wananchi and key areas of importance. It is part and parcel of the dignity of being a Senator and a Chair of the Committee.

Is he in order to use such language?

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I do not know where that is coming from but if you heard what I said, when I said that it is a relief, you know for sure from your Chair, that I am one of the best performing Chairpersons who has brought all statements raised to the Committee. Sen. (Dr.) Zani cannot try to impute that I sit ---

Order! Sen. Sakaja Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. On top of bringing statements, I take individual Senators to different agencies concerned. Is it in order for Sen. (Dr.) Zani to impute improper motive that it is not a pleasurable experience for me to bring responses to the House while I really enjoy?

There was a substantive ruling on this matter. When you change a law, it replaces an old one and the new one takes its place, unless it is saved in transitional clauses.

What is it, Sen. (Dr.) Zani?

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Is Sen. Sakaja in order to refer to the fact that some of the statements might have been dropped as a result of the changes that have been made as a relief? It should be a pleasure for the Chairperson of any Committee to bring all the statements that are sought. They help us to answer questions from wananchi and key areas of importance. It is part and parcel of the dignity of being a Senator and a Chair of the Committee.

Is he in order to use such language?

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I do not know where that is coming from but if you heard what I said, when I said that it is a relief, you know for sure from your Chair, that I am one of the best performing Chairpersons who has brought all statements raised to the Committee. Sen. (Dr.) Zani cannot try to impute that I sit ---

Order! Sen. Sakaja Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. On top of bringing statements, I take individual Senators to different agencies concerned. Is it in order for Sen. (Dr.) Zani to impute improper motive that it is not a pleasurable experience for me to bring responses to the House while I really enjoy?

Order! Order, Sen. Sakaja.

Hon. Senators, I have a Communication to make. Pursuant to Standing Order No.141, a Bill having been read a first time shall stand committed to the relevant Standing Committee.

In this case, the following Bills stand committed to the following committees-

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this where I now feel the pressure of space---

You cannot move the microphone!

Order, Sen. Murkomen. That is a fixed asset.

It is immovable!

Proceed, Sen. Murkomen.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move that the Petroleum Bill (National Assembly Bills No.48 of 2017) be read a Second time.

From the onset, I know this is a very important Bill. I am expected to take at least one hour to prosecute this Bill. From the beginning, I wish to state that I will not take that one hour because of the interest on this Bill by Members. They have already told me that they would like to contribute to this Bill this afternoon. Therefore, I will restrict myself to about 15 to 20 minutes to just highlight the salient issues regarding this Bill.

This Bill is extremely important. As a way of introduction, the Constitution makes it clear that resources that are found in our country must be used for the benefit of the people of Kenya.

Secondly, these resources must be shared in a manner that benefits the local communities and their economies. This is very clear in the Constitution. So, this Bill is drafted and founded on that basis.

Thirdly, the history of establishing this Bill is based on the fact that Kenya explored and established that we have petroleum in this country. So, the Ngamia 1 we all know now is a very viable block. We are possibly going to have oil in the country.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, even if he changed his mind, he cannot do so as a Member of the SBC without approaching the Mover of the Bill. That will only denote bad faith. More importantly, if the report is ready I am surprised that they did not approach the Chair to facilitate tabling of that report in good time. If that report is ready, it should be tabled but there is no procedure now for tabling that Report. To add on to that, I am already moving the Bill; I am not out of order.

Majority Leader, you cannot declare yourself not out of order. That is not your province.

Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr., do you want to say something before I make a short ruling?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is good practice that the committees obviously give us reports so that we have the benefit of the information they receive from the public. However, we should not allow the committees to stifle us; then the committees will not do their work and then the business of the Senate will then hang.

This Senate is diligent, we have good Senators, we can proceed and then the Chair and the Committee can have an opportunity at some point to present those observations. However, since the Senate Majority Leader is on his feet and we slotted this during the SBC, I think he should proceed.

Thank you.

Order, Senators. The Plenary of this House is superior to its committees. These committees serve this House. That is number one.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, even if he changed his mind, he cannot do so as a Member of the SBC without approaching the Mover of the Bill. That will only denote bad faith. More importantly, if the report is ready I am surprised that they did not approach the Chair to facilitate tabling of that report in good time. If that report is ready, it should be tabled but there is no procedure now for tabling that Report. To add on to that, I am already moving the Bill; I am not out of order.

Majority Leader, you cannot declare yourself not out of order. That is not your province.

Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr., do you want to say something before I make a short ruling?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is good practice that the committees obviously give us reports so that we have the benefit of the information they receive from the public. However, we should not allow the committees to stifle us; then the committees will not do their work and then the business of the Senate will then hang.

This Senate is diligent, we have good Senators, we can proceed and then the Chair and the Committee can have an opportunity at some point to present those observations. However, since the Senate Majority Leader is on his feet and we slotted this during the SBC, I think he should proceed.

Thank you.

Order, Senators. The Plenary of this House is superior to its committees. These committees serve this House. That is number one.

Order, Sen. Sakaja! Let us not spend much time on this. The Speaker does not act whimsically. The Speaker is guided by the Standing Orders. Standing Order No.87 is very clear, that any Senator, including the Senate Majority Leader, can use Kiswahili or English. The only caveat is under Standing Order No.87 (2) , which required that the language you start with must be the language you should continue and end with.

Let us have the Senate Majority Leader.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was willing to take the challenge. The only problem is that I am not willing to break the Standing Orders because I had already started in English. Let me just continue in the language that I started with.

I thank you for that direction. I offered to use 20 minutes. I was at the point where I was saying that part of the background to this Bill is the establishment that Kenya is endowed with natural resources in the form of oil. With the discovery of oil in Ngamia 1- --

Ni nini, Sen. Sakaja?

Bw. Naibu Spika, tuna kikao katika kaunti ya Uasin Gishu ili kuleta Bunge la Seneti karibu na wananchi. Kwa sababu tunazungumza kuhusu mambo ya mafuta, ni vyema umwambie Kiongozi wa Wengi aongee katika Kiswahili ili wananchi wa Kenya wasikie. Tuko katika Jimbo la Uasin Gishu na mambo ya mafuta yanahusu Wakenya wengi. Ninajua kwamba, anajua Kiswahili kwa sababu ni hodari katika lugha ya Kiswahili. Ni vyema azungumze katika lugha ya Kiswahili.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this Bill was enacted to answer to the challenges that Kenya as a country is facing as a result of discovery of oil in Turkana. It is now public knowledge to all of us that we have oil in Lokichar area in Ngamia 1. It is not just that we discovered oil but it is of commercial value and that Kenya is in the process of establishing how to export the important resource.

It is also important for me to notify Members that it is not only Turkana where we have oil. Large deposits of oil have been found in Elgeyo-Marakwet County. This is the right forum for us to have this discussion about the importance of petroleum law. I would like to request Hon. Members, even as they make their contributions, to prepare themselves to give suggestions on how we can better this law. Yesterday, it was Turkana, today is Elgeyo-Marakwet, tomorrow it could be Lamu and next day Homa Bay. The rest of the country will benefit from this Bill.

Thirdly, many of us have contributed earlier in regard to the Petition that came from Nandi which we discussed. It is about the fear that natural resources are a curse and that in countries that have natural resources, it has led to conflict in the areas.

We know the story of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) , which is a big country. It is almost a quarter the Continent of Africa and they have challenges in so far as resources are concerned. However, we also know of other countries that have positive examples. We have countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that have used their natural resources very well to develop the country and diversify. Although we say that they do not have democracy like we do, they have leaders that have a foresight who know that natural resources are short-terms. For that matter, they have diversified. That is why most of us know about Emirates Airline.

Many people who know about emirates do not know about oil. Instead, they know about Dubai and Abu Dhabi. They know that Dubai is a well-built city. They know about Emirates Airline because they are aware of the well-established transport in that great country.

By way of introduction, I just want to add that in about 2014/2015, I had an opportunity of escorting the former President of Nigeria, Mr. Goodluck Jonathan, who happens to come from the Delta region where there is a lot of oil. He told me one important thing, that as a country, we must think about the legal framework before we start selling or exporting oil. So, a legal framework is important because it can be a source of conflict.

You saw what happened in Turkana the other day. I had an occasion to attend some of the negotiations regarding this Bill about sharing of the revenue, the benefits that should go to the county and what should go to the local community and establishment of a Trust Fund for the local community and it is extremely emotive issue. That is why as a nation, we must take this Bill extremely serious.

Part 1 of this Bill is about exploration, development and production of petroleum. So, it covers exploration, development and production but also transport upstream to downstream of petroleum. This Bill has been prepared through extensive public consultation.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was willing to take the challenge. The only problem is that I am not willing to break the Standing Orders because I had already started in English. Let me just continue in the language that I started with.

I thank you for that direction. I offered to use 20 minutes. I was at the point where I was saying that part of the background to this Bill is the establishment that Kenya is endowed with natural resources in the form of oil. With the discovery of oil in Ngamia 1- --

Order Senators! Those who are retreating to do so in silence. Sen. Murkomen, you may proceed.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this Bill was enacted to answer to the challenges that Kenya as a country is facing as a result of discovery of oil in Turkana. It is now public knowledge to all of us that we have oil in Lokichar area in Ngamia 1. It is not just that we discovered oil but it is of commercial value and that Kenya is in the process of establishing how to export the important resource.

It is also important for me to notify Members that it is not only Turkana where we have oil. Large deposits of oil have been found in Elgeyo-Marakwet County. This is the right forum for us to have this discussion about the importance of petroleum law. I would like to request Hon. Members, even as they make their contributions, to prepare themselves to give suggestions on how we can better this law. Yesterday, it was Turkana, today is Elgeyo-Marakwet, tomorrow it could be Lamu and next day Homa Bay. The rest of the country will benefit from this Bill.

Thirdly, many of us have contributed earlier in regard to the Petition that came from Nandi which we discussed. It is about the fear that natural resources are a curse and that in countries that have natural resources, it has led to conflict in the areas.

We know the story of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) , which is a big country. It is almost a quarter the Continent of Africa and they have challenges in so far as resources are concerned. However, we also know of other countries that have positive examples. We have countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that have used their natural resources very well to develop the country and diversify. Although we say that they do not have democracy like we do, they have leaders that have a foresight who know that natural resources are short-terms. For that matter, they have diversified. That is why most of us know about Emirates Airline.

Many people who know about emirates do not know about oil. Instead, they know about Dubai and Abu Dhabi. They know that Dubai is a well-built city. They know about Emirates Airline because they are aware of the well-established transport in that great country.

By way of introduction, I just want to add that in about 2014/2015, I had an opportunity of escorting the former President of Nigeria, Mr. Goodluck Jonathan, who happens to come from the Delta region where there is a lot of oil. He told me one important thing, that as a country, we must think about the legal framework before we start selling or exporting oil. So, a legal framework is important because it can be a source of conflict.

You saw what happened in Turkana the other day. I had an occasion to attend some of the negotiations regarding this Bill about sharing of the revenue, the benefits that should go to the county and what should go to the local community and establishment of a Trust Fund for the local community and it is extremely emotive issue. That is why as a nation, we must take this Bill extremely serious.

Part 1 of this Bill is about exploration, development and production of petroleum. So, it covers exploration, development and production but also transport upstream to downstream of petroleum. This Bill has been prepared through extensive public consultation.

I want to acknowledge the effort of leaders of Turkana who took it upon themselves to almost believe that this Bill is about them and the county. The Governor of Turkana, Members of Parliament (MPs) from Turkana and Members of County Assembly (MCAs) of Turkana have helped the rest of Kenya because the oil was discovered in their region. They have helped the rest of Kenya to reflect on the issues that would be pertinent in a local community in so far as the establishment of this very important resource is concerned.

Having watched some of the debates in Turkana and people saying that because of the oil prices – like Sen. Sakaja was trying to challenge me to say something about the price of oil – in Turkana, they were saying that now that we are taxing petroleum, they would like the national Government to prepare a different “tap” so that they collect their oil directly from there and use it. You can imagine the kind of misconceptions people have about the oil business.

The law provides that the national Government must provide a national petroleum strategic plan. Just the way we have county integrated development plans, we must have a national petroleum strategic plan which is developed in a consultative process and which provides guidance on its implementation via a national policy. That is very important. Once we pass this Bill, it will be mandatory that every Kenyan must have a say, through their representatives, on how to deal with issues of how to explore, develop and use petroleum resources in this country.

It also provides that the national Government may conduct upstream petroleum operations on its own or through the National Oil Corporation of Kenya (NOCK), for example, which is a public company owned by the people of Kenya. Most people know about the Aramco cases which relates to the oil exploring and selling companies in Iran.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I know that you are a prolific teacher of international law. You know very well the negotiations that went into the issues of nationalisation of American companies in Iran after the 1979 revolution and what followed. In many countries like Libya and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), oil operations are done via national companies because of the importance of oil to the national economy. It is time we started thinking about strengthening national companies to operate like private companies, with the kind of responsibility that is expected of private entities.

For a long time the behaviour of public officers, who are appointed to run Government parastatals in this country, has been wanting. However, with the reforms that we are putting in place to ensure that accountability becomes the order of the day, it is expected that companies like the National Oil Corporation of Kenya (NOCK) will take great responsibility in conducting upstream operations of petroleum. Let me emphasize this point because the law permits private contractors or any other person, as prescribed by an Act of Parliament, to be also involved.

I have personal preferences and believe that the sovereignty that comes with natural resources – particularly with the magnitude of oil and the sensitivity that is involved – it is important for the national Government and the people of Kenya to have control. We do not want to find ourselves being mortgaged to other countries.

I do not want to mention other nations because of my position and jeopardise the international relations, but there is a country that I visited the other day which gave out all their oil exploration to another country from the Far East. Since they are not meeting their financial obligations, that country says that it will take over the management and ownership of exploration, marketing and selling of oil in that area. It is important, and I hope that the Committee looked at this in their Report, to find out how the nation and people will have control.

Part III of the Bill deals with a very important concept about licensing and reviewing of licenses. It is important to understand that the Cabinet Secretary (CS) has been given certain responsibility, but not to perform as an individual. The law makes it clear that there must be an establishment of a National Upstream Petroleum Advisory Committee. The responsibly of that committee is to advise the CS on how to deal with negotiations on petroleum agreements. Again, this is an area that Kenyans must insist on transparency, because it is possible for some people to mortgage the country by giving exploration certificates and licences, shrouded in mystery, to certain individuals.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, since exploitation is going on in Elgeyo-Marakwet and Turkana counties, we challenge the national Government, through the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum, to make public all the exploration agreements without exception. This is because these resources are not owned by a Ministry or office of the national Government, but by the people of Kenya. They are given by God for the benefit of the people of Kenya. In the interest of transparency and accountability, these agreements must be made public.

That is why this law, unlike the existing one, makes it clear that all the agreements related to upstream petroleum operations and matters related to policy, must be subjected to an advisory committee that deals with those issues related to licences. This advisory committee also assists the CS in developing criteria for negotiation of the petroleum agreements.

Part IV of this Bill provides for upstream petroleum rights and management of petroleum resources. This is where the licences are obtained for operations from the Authority and the procedure has been set out as to how that licence will be achieved. It explains how a person will apply for a licence, the authority will review and, finally, the CS will have the authority to give the licences.

Part IV of the Bill also provides that the licensing agreement, unlike in the past, must make the licensing process predictable, so that it enhances confidence in negotiation and the award process. It is important for the people of Kenya to know who the investor is in that particular sector. It is also important for the investors to know that if they would like to invest in the oil sector, there is no favouritism; that other people are negotiating better terms in one corner and they are expected to abide by other obligations that are beyond what they can do. In that regard, it is important that the Bill provides that the negotiation processes must be transparent and accountable to the people of Kenya.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this Part is also important as it requires submission to Parliament of a field development plan. Parliament includes the Senate of the Republic of Kenya and we will have an opportunity and responsibility in so far as contracts related to

You have three minutes.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, if you give me another five minutes, I will complete my contribution.

You have three minutes.

That is not just for the county of Elgeyo Marakwet; I pray that all the other counties get something. I pray that we get some oil in another county; we get diamonds in another county and gold in another county and precious stones in Tharaka Nithi. This will make our counties very viable so that they can be attractive areas of destination.

Finally, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to emphasize two things. The law provides for a framework for compliance with the environmental, health and safety standards, which include strict standards for waste management. This also includes the need for proper maintenance of the contract area to ensure that the environment is safe. The environment is very important and the reason why we have many diseases is because we have messed up with our environment. This Law---

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the three minutes begin now. This law gives us a great opportunity to deal with environmental issues to ensure that we do not have a situation where we will say that the environment is not important; as long as we get the money; we get the resources. You can have the money and the resources, and then as a result of destroying the environment, you have drought or you have diseases that you are unable to cure using the money that you have earned.

In conclusion, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this law also provides for the protection of community rights, rights to participation, compensation, sensitization, capacity building, among many other issues. I know that the Chair of the Committee – the Minority Leader – and the rest of the Committee Members will add something to it to educate this House about the strength and importance of this Bill. I urge this House to come together – like Sen. Orengo said earlier – as usual in a bipartisan manner to look into this Bill.

We should look at it with the people of Kenya, posterity and with the greater interest of this nation in mind, just like we have always done. This is to demonstrate our position, as the Senate that is willing to listen to various views from the people of Kenya; but also will apply good judgement to ensure that this law is passed.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move and ask the Chair of the Committee to second.

It can be understood.

Yes, it can be understood. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, if you have less than Kshs1 billion for the development fund in a county, this is wonderful. That is because if we get high deposits of oil in Elgeyo Marakwet, I am very sure that the investments that come with supporting local community; the question related to the resources that come to trust fund and the fact that there are other resources that will go to the county government which we can use to develop our counties.

That is not just for the county of Elgeyo Marakwet; I pray that all the other counties get something. I pray that we get some oil in another county; we get diamonds in another county and gold in another county and precious stones in Tharaka Nithi. This will make our counties very viable so that they can be attractive areas of destination.

Finally, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to emphasize two things. The law provides for a framework for compliance with the environmental, health and safety standards, which include strict standards for waste management. This also includes the need for proper maintenance of the contract area to ensure that the environment is safe. The environment is very important and the reason why we have many diseases is because we have messed up with our environment. This Law---

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the three minutes begin now. This law gives us a great opportunity to deal with environmental issues to ensure that we do not have a situation where we will say that the environment is not important; as long as we get the money; we get the resources. You can have the money and the resources, and then as a result of destroying the environment, you have drought or you have diseases that you are unable to cure using the money that you have earned.

In conclusion, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this law also provides for the protection of community rights, rights to participation, compensation, sensitization, capacity building, among many other issues. I know that the Chair of the Committee – the Minority Leader – and the rest of the Committee Members will add something to it to educate this House about the strength and importance of this Bill. I urge this House to come together – like Sen. Orengo said earlier – as usual in a bipartisan manner to look into this Bill.

We should look at it with the people of Kenya, posterity and with the greater interest of this nation in mind, just like we have always done. This is to demonstrate our position, as the Senate that is willing to listen to various views from the people of Kenya; but also will apply good judgement to ensure that this law is passed.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move and ask the Chair of the Committee to second.

entrepreneurship starting with whatever is available in Turkana and elsewhere will be periodically involved in the extraction and maybe the whole service delivery of the oil. In this regard, we took an example of a country such as Nigeria which has done fairly well. They started without anybody who knew about oil---

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I rise to Second this Bill. I also rise to outline the origin and importance of this Bill. This Bill comes at a time when Kenya was supposed to be joining the oil league of nations. It has also been regarded with utmost importance by all the Members in the Committee. I am glad to say that the Senator for Turkana, where the first oil reserve was discovered, is a Member of this Committee; and he carries the approval of this Bill.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the issue of oil is not just an issue of extraction; it also entails many other activities before you come to what people see as the end result – the dollar. This Bill starts with looking at streamlining the operations upstream at the

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, for protecting me. Once in a while, this protection is needed.

entrepreneurship starting with whatever is available in Turkana and elsewhere will be periodically involved in the extraction and maybe the whole service delivery of the oil. In this regard, we took an example of a country such as Nigeria which has done fairly well. They started without anybody who knew about oil---

Please, conclude.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in doing all this, we were guided by the principle of the interest of the people of Kenya. We would wish that the children of Turkana have the best of education out of the fund from this oil and that Turkana becomes a granary for Kenya and an agricultural stronghold, the way we have seen the people in the Arab Emirates investing their money in the right ways. This is what this Bill entails.

I therefore, ask this House that we come together---.

Very well. Time is up. Thank you, Sen. (Eng.) Maina.

Can I have one minute?

You have one minute. Please conclude.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in my language, one minute can mean five but let me use three minutes---.

Very well. Time is up. Thank you, Sen. (Eng.) Maina.

Order, Senator. There is only one language in this Chamber - that is the language of the Standing Orders. You have one minute.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, let us all be guided not by the divisive political notions that we have, by looking at this Bill in the spirit of the “Handshake” - the miraculous and religious thing that has occurred and given Kenya the road to prosperity.

With those remarks, I beg to second and beseech this House to support it for the benefit of our people.

Very well, Thank you. Let us have the Senate Minority Leader (Sen. Orengo) .

The Senate Minority Leader (Sen. Orengo) : Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I rise to support this Bill---

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

What is it, Sen. (Eng.) Maina?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, my dear friend and former schoolmate---

Which one? Who is your schoolmate?

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I rise to support this Bill---

Order, Senator! One minute, please. There is a procedural issue we skipped. Resume your seat. (Question proposed) The Senate Minority Leader (

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I respect him, but his misunderstanding of my intention based on what I said should not be allowed to go unchallenged. He is insinuating that I want to use the handshake to do an ulterior thing which is not the case.

What are you doing with the „handshake‟?

What is it, Sen. (Eng.) Maina?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, my dear friend and former schoolmate---

“Relevant stakeholders participate effectively in the making of the national policy on petroleum operations.” We can talk about stakeholders generally. However, in this particular provision, there was need to put in that stakeholders would include the county governments and the communities where these operations are being carried out.

Clause 6(1) says- “The Cabinet Secretary shall develop, publish and review a national petroleum strategic plan.” He does this without consultation with anybody. Clause 7 says- “Within three months after the end of each financial year, the Cabinet Secretary shall prepare and publish a report on the implementation of the national petroleum strategic plan.” Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, if you look at the generality of these provisions, from Clause 7 to Clause 8 up to Clause 126, there is something that I find to be very odd. It is the CS who will negotiate contracts for purposes of upstream operations; him alone. How can we have a position like this? I have never seen a law like this. It is all there in black and white.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is Sen. Orengo.

Okay, proceed.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I respect him, but his misunderstanding of my intention based on what I said should not be allowed to go unchallenged. He is insinuating that I want to use the handshake to do an ulterior thing which is not the case.

What are you doing with the „handshake‟?

Very well. Proceed,

With respect. You should be ashamed of what you are saying.

Point taken, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. We should not lose the fact that oil is a curse. We have no doubt that oil is a curse. This is because there are studies that have been done by some scholars in this industry and they have said that democracy has not worked in the countries where oil was discovered after the year 1960. In fact, authoritarianism has sipped in to an extent that was never imagined. They have given some examples to back up findings. If you look at oil producing countries in Africa, be they in West Africa, or Central Africa, they are not doing very well in terms of democracy. If you take a country like Venezuela, for example, which was doing very well, oil has been a curse to it. If you look at some countries in North Africa, which include Libya, oil has been a curse more than a blessing. In the Middle East, those scholars who have looked into this matter have said that what has helped them is not in the sense of building democracy, but the fact that oil has given them money to take control of their people. They give people benefits as if they are being rewarded in order to make sure that they do not have participation in the public affairs of those particular countries. We have to carry out certain very exhaustive amendments to this Bill. It cannot stand the way it is. First of all, the Constitution says that oil is part of the land. It also says that land in Kenya belongs to the people of Kenya, as a nation, and as communities. Although this Bill is borrowing from an Article in the Constitution which vests public lands to the National Land Commission (NLC) , it is now saying that oil is vested in the National Government, in trust, for the people of Kenya. A statement must be made in this Bill if we want the Turkana people to believe in us when we say that oil belongs to the people of Kenya as a nation and as communities. In that case, we will be talking sense to the communities. We are creating a behemoth or a creature in this Bill. If you look at the powers given to the Cabinet Secretary (CS) in this Bill, I can tell you that we will have no responsibility in the management of operations of oil, particularly upstream. That needs to be corrected. If I had more time, I would, probably, talk about a few general issues. However, look at the powers of the CS. According to the Constitution, the CS only answers questions to Parliament, but he is not accountable to it. A CS is accountable to the President. Therefore, what the Senate Majority Leader refers to as approval of development strategies for oil operations, it is an idea that comes when the more important decisions have already been made. Clause 5 (1) says- “The Cabinet Secretary shall develop and publish a national policy on petroleum operations which shall be reviewed at least once in every five years.” It then goes on to say in Clause 5 (2) as follows:-

On a point of Order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. The Senate Minority Leader (Sen. Orengo) : Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I withdraw and apologise.

Order, Sen. Seneta. Sen. Orengo has withdrawn and apologised.

Yes, Sen. (Eng.) Maina. This is a very bad law. I say this with respect, but that is not to say that it should be thrown out. There should be some amendments to it.

He has. The Senate Minority Leader (Sen. Orengo) : Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have withdrawn.

He has withdrawn and apologised. Let us proceed.

The Senate Minority Leader (Sen. Orengo) : Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, out of 12 positions in the whole Republic, 47 counties, and you just have one representative of the CoG, it cannot be that. Look at this area; I am glad we are in this part of the country. There is oil in Elgeyo-Marakwet. There will be oil in Turkana, Baringo, Trans-Nzoia and Nandi. In fact, if you look at the studies, as the Rift Valley comes from Israel across Africa, there is something about oil.

The oil in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is in the fault line of the Rift Valley in those lakes. So, there is a possibility that the whole sweep from

Turkana to Bomet up to Kisii and Nyanza, we will have a lot of oil discoveries. At the end of the day, you will just have one representative of all counties. I do not think that makes any sense.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the other thing that I have found very mischievous which has something to do with what has happened in Turkana – Sen. Wetangula probably knows this better than I do – what happened in Nigeria is that the communities where oil was found – and this is a general principle everywhere, even in Libya and Sudan where oil discovered, is that there is a lot of trouble, exploitation and human misery. People tend to rise up and say, we cannot have this. That is why the Ogoni rose up in Nigeria.

Clause 10 (6) states- „(a) any person who without reasonable excuse, obstructs or hinders the Cabinet Secretary – I told you, all this is about the Cabinet Secretary – or authorised officer in the exercise of the Cabinet Secretary‟s powers under this section or,

Order!

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I thank him for accepting to be informed. When he was reading the advisory committee membership, he did not mention that there is a representative of the Council of Governors (CoG) . It is important that we inform Kenyans that there is a representative of the CoG. You have not finished yet; you have not talked about a representative of the Council of Governors (CoG) . It is also important to inform Kenyans that we have a representative of the CoG. Why are you not giving that particular one?

I hope you are conversant with the geographical situation of the Speaker of the House.

Order, Senator! That is not parliamentary. Use other words. Use different words.

On a point of Order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. The Senate Minority Leader (

national Government. Midstream and downstream, you can find some responsibilities being given to the county government.

If you are running oil operations which are worth billions of dollars and you tell the County Government of Uasin Gishu that you can issue licences to petrol stations, what are you saying? This is what we are trying to say in this Bill, that the operations that matter, you do not involve communities and the county governments. The county governments must be involved from the beginning; upstream, midstream and downstream. Then, we will be talking serious business.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I also think - and I must say that we were discussing it with Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. - that to have a model contract in the legislation, it means that the Cabinet Secretary has everything for seeking rent. This is because he will say: “You know, I have got the contract here. It has been drafted; we will just put your name and address.” This is what happened even on the issues of land in Bomet, Kericho and Nandi. Power was given to the governor and Commissioner of Lands. We are trying to do the same thing. We have made it possible for the Cabinet Secretary to seek rent.

I am not saying that all Cabinet Secretaries would seek rent, but there is a good template here, in this Bill. From the beginning to the end, we will have Cabinet Secretaries, like the Ministers in Nigeria, who when a new government comes into office, they obviously end up in jail. This is because they had so much power and resources and the attraction is so high because the decisions start and stop with them. Even for the protection of Cabinet Secretaries, we must make sure that these powers are diluted and the people have a proper role in this matter.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I had quite a bit to say, but I do not want to deny other Members a chance of saying whatever they want to say.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I withdraw and apologise.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, you should allow me ---

Order, Sen. Seneta. Sen. Orengo has withdrawn and apologised.

What does that tell us? It tells us that the amount of interest in matters oil are bigger than us, as a country, and if not properly handled, it can lead us to extreme difficulty. The people who have an interest in the oil business are sharks. If we, as legislators, do not protect the very people that have put us into office, we shall be doing ourselves a great disservice. We shall not be fair before God and the people who voted for us.

If you want to have an understanding of the thinking that led Ministry officials into agreeing on some of the proposals that they are making before us, as a Committee, among the amendments that we have proposed, is that we need to amend Clause 22 to read: “The Authority that is being set up, where exploration activity involves drilling or an activity that is likely to alter the land on which exploration activity is being undertaken, requires an application to submit an environmental impact assessment.” They could not even think about the environment and that tells you how much vendor-driven this Bill is. If we are not careful and do not give enough thought to it, we shall have sold our country.

Finally, previously I was opposed to the idea of counties sending money to the Council of Governors (CoG). I thought that county governments were siphoning money, but the kind of presentation that I saw from CoG was shallow and minute, in comparison with the presenters that came from Kenya oil and gas experts. It tells us that we need to allow the CoG to have money to hire researchers, who will work for them, on behalf of the people of Kenya.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, with those very many remarks, I give my conditional support.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. This is a poorly drafted Bill and it cannot stand as it is. I say so because petroleum is a very dangerous finding for any country. If we do not get it right from the word go, we will destroy our country.

I would encourage your office that for a Bill such as this, this House should have conducted a retreat for all Senators for a day or two. We would go through it painstakingly, clause by clause, look at comparable jurisdictions and experiences and give this country a good law. Listening to my distinguished colleague from Nyeri telling this House that they picked from the best example, Nigeria, then you know that there is something very wrong.

Order, Senators! What is it, Sen. Kirinyaga?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the example that I gave of Nigeria was about the local people getting involved in oil matters and not the ministers or governors who are in jail. I was talking about real entrepreneurs in Nigeria today, who have been assimilated in this kind of--- I have never stood for theft and it will never happen.

Very well. Your point is made.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, out of 12 positions in the whole Republic, 47 counties, and you just have one representative of the CoG, it cannot be that. Look at this area; I am glad we are in this part of the country. There is oil in Elgeyo-Marakwet. There will be oil in Turkana, Baringo, Trans-Nzoia and Nandi. In fact, if you look at the studies, as the Rift Valley comes from Israel across Africa, there is something about oil. The oil in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is in the fault line of the Rift Valley in those lakes. So, there is a possibility that the whole sweep from

Turkana to Bomet up to Kisii and Nyanza, we will have a lot of oil discoveries. At the end of the day, you will just have one representative of all counties. I do not think that makes any sense.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the other thing that I have found very mischievous which has something to do with what has happened in Turkana – Sen. Wetangula probably knows this better than I do – what happened in Nigeria is that the communities where oil was found – and this is a general principle everywhere, even in Libya and Sudan where oil discovered, is that there is a lot of trouble, exploitation and human misery. People tend to rise up and say, we cannot have this. That is why the Ogoni rose up in Nigeria.

Clause 10 (6) states- „(a) any person who without reasonable excuse, obstructs or hinders the Cabinet Secretary – I told you, all this is about the Cabinet Secretary – or authorised officer in the exercise of the Cabinet Secretary‟s powers under this section or,

Order!

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I will not belabour this because a lot has been said. This is a bulky piece of legislation but it misses a lot of key points. This Bill looks at the nitty-gritty of the operational aspects and has not set the contextual and strategic framework within which that execution will be made. It has not captured the issue around ownership and jurisdiction that this law will operate---

Order! Sen. Cheruiyot and company, consult in low tones.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, there are three ladies looking at me. I apologise.

I hope you are conversant with the geographical situation of the Speaker of the House.

Where do you come from?

I come from Isiolo County. I am a daughter of Isiolo County and a daughter of Kenya. Where I come from in Isiolo which is in Kenya, we have a lot of community land that does not get mentioned.

In the oil and gas laws of the United States of America (USA) , the Indian tribes are mentioned by name with the ownership rights to those resources. It is very clear even before you look into issues of extraction, upstream, midstream or downstream petroleum operations or what have you, you already know the rights of the people.

While this Bill has some details about all these things, we do not even know who owns different things prior to extraction and during extraction. We do not talk of issues around common resources that could be drained to another county. For instance, in Northern Kenya, Turkana County may have oil but through drainage and extraction, oil from another county may be drained. So, all these are issues of strategic importance that some of our laws must look at before we look at the digging, extraction and the rest of it.

We do not even have anything to do with certain corrective rules, should we have issues. For us as legislators, even without going into the deep details of extraction and the technical aspects of things, we need to know about the ownership, jurisdictional issues and such things like contract leases. I think that has been taken care of quite a bit but what about the regulations and some of the practices that will make sure that we do not go down the oil curse?

The Bill is also very narrow. It goes straight to petroleum. There are certain aspects of the energy sector that cannot be divorced; oil and gas for instance. I do not know if this in the form and substance as it is really takes care of the aspects that we need as a country so as not to go down---

Conclude, Senator.

national Government. Midstream and downstream, you can find some responsibilities being given to the county government.

If you are running oil operations which are worth billions of dollars and you tell the County Government of Uasin Gishu that you can issue licences to petrol stations, what are you saying? This is what we are trying to say in this Bill, that the operations that matter, you do not involve communities and the county governments. The county governments must be involved from the beginning; upstream, midstream and downstream. Then, we will be talking serious business.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I also think - and I must say that we were discussing it with Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. - that to have a model contract in the legislation, it means that the Cabinet Secretary has everything for seeking rent. This is because he will say: “You know, I have got the contract here. It has been drafted; we will just put your name and address.” This is what happened even on the issues of land in Bomet, Kericho and Nandi. Power was given to the governor and Commissioner of Lands. We are trying to do the same thing. We have made it possible for the Cabinet Secretary to seek rent.

I am not saying that all Cabinet Secretaries would seek rent, but there is a good template here, in this Bill. From the beginning to the end, we will have Cabinet Secretaries, like the Ministers in Nigeria, who when a new government comes into office, they obviously end up in jail. This is because they had so much power and resources and the attraction is so high because the decisions start and stop with them. Even for the protection of Cabinet Secretaries, we must make sure that these powers are diluted and the people have a proper role in this matter.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I had quite a bit to say, but I do not want to deny other Members a chance of saying whatever they want to say.

Very well. Let us now have Sen. Olekina. Keep it short so that as many of us as possible can contribute.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I thank you for giving me this opportunity. I rise to support this Bill, albeit with a lot of amendments. I happened to have sat in the Committee that invited stakeholders.

From the outset, going through the Bill Clause by Clause, I second my good friend, Sen. Wetangula, that it might require the entire House to go through it. I will limit my presentation in about nine areas.

This Bill talks about creation of a regulatory body which will be taken care of by the Ministry of Energy. We have two Ministries but it is the Ministry of Petroleum and Mining which takes care of the downstream, midstream and upstream petroleum operations.

We interviewed stakeholders through public participation. That is why it is important that when we call for public participation sessions, we should take into consideration what the general public and stakeholders talk about. That is why from the outset, I said that it will be important for this House to get access to the Committee Report.

I want to be on record that I never agreed with most of the things. In fact, I ended up writing a minority report. It is imperative that the energy sector has its own regulatory body and the Cabinet Secretary for Petroleum and Mining also takes care of the regulatory body that deals with upstream, midstream and downstream petroleum operations.

I want to talk about the issue of contracts. I am sorry I am rushing because of time, but I want to touch on all those areas. The second area that I care so much about is the issue of revenue-sharing contracts and the field development plan which the contractors have to come up with. These are things that have to be ratified by Parliament, so that it takes care of the interest of the people.

The other issue, which is something that every stakeholder spoke about, is to do with direct involvement by county governments. This Bill creates very powerful Cabinet Secretaries. In this era of devolved Government structure, it is imperative that the people in the county governments and their county governments have a say, so that we can be seen to be dealing with issues that take care of all our interests.

Fourth, is the issue of revenue sharing. I am not from the school of thought that believes that the county governments or the people should have a share of the national Government revenue. I tend to believe that county governments and the people should have a share of the profits that we get from the upstream petroleum operations. It will be good for the people of Kenya to get 70 per cent and people living around places where oil is extracted to get 10 per cent. The issue of saying that people went to Turkana and negotiated for 5 per cent or 25 per cent does not involve the entire country.

The other thing is the issue of permits. From the outset I said this is a terrible Bill. We will bring amendments from Clause 1 all the way to the end because when you talk about permits, there are so many permits which are required, which do not take into consideration---

That is okay. You have one minute.

Order, Senators! What is it, Sen. Kirinyaga?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the example that I gave of Nigeria was about the local people getting involved in oil matters and not the ministers or governors who are in jail. I was talking about real entrepreneurs in Nigeria today, who have been assimilated in this kind of--- I have never stood for theft and it will never happen.

Very well. Your point is made.

Sen. Wetangula.

Is that a point of order?

On a point of order, Madam Temporary Speaker. I think for a Member to be granted this opportunity, one has to walk all the way to the Chair!

Order! Sen. Cheruiyot and company, consult in low tones.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the worry I have about this piece of legislation as it delves into deep prescriptive aspects of prosecution of extraction and production of oil, especially considering the issue of contractors and the other nitty-

That is collusion, condonation and connivance.

Not really!

Sen. (Dr.) Kabaka, you are out of order. I have a list that I am following and it has been listed from the time that you started standing. We know who stood ahead of who. The eyes of the Chair are looking at those who stood earlier. The earlier you stand, the better for you.

Sen. (Dr.) Langat, you have four minutes remaining.

Conclude, Senator.

Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker. This Bill was first introduced in the National Assembly in 2017. It has gone to and from the National Assembly; it went back with reservations from the President. It has come back.

Listening to the discussions and contributions, what happened all this time? This is because I have also seen places where stakeholders are involved even in the policy that is talked about in Clause 5. Probably, either stakeholders were not very involved or this is a Bill that came from the Cabinet or Ministry and was just interpreted and taken as it is. I am happy that it is being subjected to this scrutiny. This Bill is also important because it actually proposes the repeal of the Petroleum

Act, Cap. 308 of the Laws of Kenya.

Madam Temporary Speaker, going through it, I think the Bill starts very well because it starts with the issue of policy and strategic plan. This is important. That policy will be evaluated after every five years. After that, I think we run into turmoil especially at Clause 9.

With regard to Clause 9, we see where the problem is. As other Members said, a lot of powers have been given to the Cabinet Secretary (CS) . Clause 12 says we have a representative of the CoG. However, no provisions at all have been made as to the qualifications of that person, or the procedure on how to select him. In other words,

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I thank you for giving me this opportunity. I rise to support this Bill, albeit with a lot of amendments. I happened to have sat in the Committee that invited stakeholders.

From the outset, going through the Bill Clause by Clause, I second my good friend, Sen. Wetangula, that it might require the entire House to go through it. I will limit my presentation in about nine areas.

This Bill talks about creation of a regulatory body which will be taken care of by the Ministry of Energy. We have two Ministries but it is the Ministry of Petroleum and Mining which takes care of the downstream, midstream and upstream petroleum operations.

We interviewed stakeholders through public participation. That is why it is important that when we call for public participation sessions, we should take into consideration what the general public and stakeholders talk about. That is why from the outset, I said that it will be important for this House to get access to the Committee Report.

I want to be on record that I never agreed with most of the things. In fact, I ended up writing a minority report. It is imperative that the energy sector has its own regulatory body and the Cabinet Secretary for Petroleum and Mining also takes care of the regulatory body that deals with upstream, midstream and downstream petroleum operations.

I want to talk about the issue of contracts. I am sorry I am rushing because of time, but I want to touch on all those areas. The second area that I care so much about is the issue of revenue-sharing contracts and the field development plan which the contractors have to come up with. These are things that have to be ratified by Parliament, so that it takes care of the interest of the people.

The other issue, which is something that every stakeholder spoke about, is to do with direct involvement by county governments. This Bill creates very powerful Cabinet Secretaries. In this era of devolved Government structure, it is imperative that the people in the county governments and their county governments have a say, so that we can be seen to be dealing with issues that take care of all our interests.

Fourth, is the issue of revenue sharing. I am not from the school of thought that believes that the county governments or the people should have a share of the national Government revenue. I tend to believe that county governments and the people should have a share of the profits that we get from the upstream petroleum operations. It will be good for the people of Kenya to get 70 per cent and people living around places where oil is extracted to get 10 per cent. The issue of saying that people went to Turkana and negotiated for 5 per cent or 25 per cent does not involve the entire country.

The other thing is the issue of permits. From the outset I said this is a terrible Bill. We will bring amendments from Clause 1 all the way to the end because when you talk about permits, there are so many permits which are required, which do not take into consideration---

That is okay. You have one minute.

On a point of order, Madam Temporary Speaker.

What is your point of order, Sen.Olekina?

Madam Temporary Speaker, I plead with you that this Bill should be withdrawn. Let us go back and have a very serious session, clause by clause, because I am not prepared to assent to a Bill that gives unlimited powers to a CS under the current constitutional framework because he or she has no responsibility. The only responsibly he or she has is to the appointing authority and not the people who are in charge of the resources that are emanating like now the oil in Turkana County and other areas of the country.

Yes, I support that we need a Bill or legal framework. However, the manner in which it has been drafted is very hurried and will create a lot of problems and insecurity in this country. I once sat in the Kenya Petroleum Refinery (KPR) Board and came to realise that there were share “A” and “B”. Share “A” were the marketers and “B” were the Government. Therefore, we had a very raw deal because they carried the day. We are just about to make the same mistake today. We want to bequeath this to the multinationals who will exploit and also tell us: “Either you play the pipe or ship out.” These are resources where we will be told to ship out.

I reluctantly support this with a major shift in the way we want to amend this Bill.

Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker.

Is that a point of order?

On a point of order, Madam Temporary Speaker. I think for a Member to be granted this opportunity, one has to walk all the way to the Chair!

Order, Sen. (Dr.) Kabaka! You are out of order.

On a point of order, Madam Temporary Speaker.

Madam Temporary Speaker, I am wearing four glasses. I saw him walk there and he was given a chance.

Order!

That is collusion, condonation and connivance.

Not really!

Sen. (Dr.) Kabaka, you are out of order. I have a list that I am following and it has been listed from the time that you started standing. We know who stood ahead of who. The eyes of the Chair are looking at those who stood earlier. The earlier you stand, the better for you.

Sen. (Dr.) Langat, you have four minutes remaining.

What is your point of order?

Hon. Senators let us allow Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. to continue. My understanding is that he is giving us different opinions from across Rwanda, Ethiopia and so on. Go ahead.

Madam Temporary Speaker, there is a difference between the seat of the arbitration and the law applicable. I have done arbitration for Kenyans and the law is the law of England. That is the difference but we leave it to drafting.

Secondly, we have not enough on environmental impact and social reports. It is not here or done well.

Thirdly, if we look at Section 28 of the Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA) , there is something called deposit bonds rules. The people who are going to do petroleum exploration are going to put Kenyans at risk like the Thange Oil Tragedy. We must ask them to commit to a bond so that just in case there is an oil spillage or disaster, there is money available. We must commit them because the law under EMCA is there. There is no contradiction in reiterating it.

On a point of order, Madam Temporary Speaker.

Senators and take them through. We need the involvement of everybody. Everybody must understand it because it is useful. However, there are a few things that need to be debated before it is enacted.

We must understand the consequence of the Bill. It is expected to set out a comprehensive framework for the exploration, development and production of petroleum. The current legal framework is not adequate; that is why it has been brought here, so when you look at it, let us have that in mind. We cannot throw away the Bill because it is impotant. I am surprised that Members of the Committee are standing here to oppose it.

Hon. (Dr.) Zani, you are concluding that he is out of order.

What is your point of order, Sen.Olekina?

Madam Temporary Speaker, it is out of order for Sen. (Eng.) Mahamud to insinuate that some of us are opposing the Bill. As a Member of that Committee, I stood here and I pointed out clearly that it was important for this House to have gone through the Committee Reports first before we debated it. That was an earlier intervention that I made. The Speaker then said that since the Bill is in its Second Reading stage, we proceed because during the Third Reading we will bring all the amendments.

Otherwise, chuma chao kimotoni. Asante.

Asante sana, Bi. Spika wa Muda, kwa kunipa fursa hii. Swala hili la madini kupatikana katika nchi yetu ya Kenya limekuwa donda dugu. Ninaona ni kama tulipopewa Uhuru tulipewa uhuru wa bendera pekee. Kwa mambo ya uchumi, inaonekana kama tumeachia wale wageni wanaokuja katika nchi yetu na wao ndio wanaopatafaida. Wakenya wamebaki wanyonge baada ya kupatikana madini kama mafuta.

Tukiangalia Mswada huu, Katibu katika Baraza la Mawaziri amepewa nguvu nyingi lakini Wakenya hawana la kusema kwa kuwa Yule Katibu anahifadhi nguvu zote.

Mswada wenyewe nauunga mkono lakini tufanye marekebisho katika sehemu zinazo onekana kutoambatana kabisa na Wakenya. Sisi kama viongozi ni jukumu letu kuwaeleza Wakenya ukweli. Tunaposema, kwa mfano, kwamba asilia mia tano inaenda kwa wananchi wa Turkana, itabidi wananchi kila mwisho wa mwezi kuangalia katika akaunti zao za benki kama wamelipwa.

Ni vizuri tuseme kuwa pesa zinaenda kwa kaunti yao kuwasaidia kutengeneza barabara, daraja na mambo yale mengine ambayo yanawafaidi pale Naunga mkono lakini tuelewe kwamba hata kama imefanyika katika sehemu zingine za dunia ambapo kumekuwa na shida, naomba kuwa tutasoma kwa wenigine ili sisi tusipitie katika ile barabara. Ninataka tuuangalie Mswada huu kwa makini, tuupige darubini na hatimaye tutajifunza kutoka kwa watu wengine ili tuepuke makosa hayo.

Asante sana.

Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker, that I have finally got the opportunity.

This is not a problem of Turkana County as other contributors have said. The area around Lake Victoria has 46 gazetted drilling blocs with the area around Lake Victoria designated as Bloc 12 D and has been assigned to Tullow Oil. When we debate this matter, I am conscious that one day, oil will be struck in Lake Victoria. The decision we make today will come to haunt us.

Madam Temporary Speaker, due to limitations of time, let me just refer this House to Article 71 of the Constitution. It talks about the role of Parliament in ratifying transactions relating to natural resources. Besides that, Parliament passed a Bill, now an Act of Parliament that is called Natural Resources Transactions Subject to Parliamentary Ratification. One of those transactions listed there is extraction of crude oil. How can it be today that an entire Ministry and Government can come up with a Bill that excludes parliamentary role in scrutiny and ratification of these agreements?

It will also be important that this nation is informed of what happened when President Obama came to Kenya. Kenya committed to be a signatory to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative where they said they would do certain things in six months. The issues of transparency, accountability and the agreements that are signed--- We know globally that oil contracts are the most opaque---

On a point of order, Madam Temporary Speaker. I request that because you have a list before you and you are subjecting Members to standing up and down, squatting up and down. Would I be in order to request that you read out the list so that we know the order and then we can be saved the trouble of having to stand up after every two minutes?

Let us have Sen. Wario. We might take a few more people if you can reduce your contribution to three minutes.

Asante, Bibi Spika wa Muda.

What is your point of order, Sen. Malala? Let it be a point of order, please.

Madam Temporary Speaker, I think my colleague is just concerned about his muscles since yesterday we played a football match and he keeps on standing and sitting down. He is straining his muscles so it would have been good enough if you considered his request of just reading out the list, we are remaining with 20 minutes to time.

Madam Temporary Speaker, thank you for the opportunity. The Committee on Energy must listen to the mood of this House. The mood of this House is that this Bill is not compliant. If the Committee does not consider our proposals of amendments, we will reject it. My vote will be no. Let me explain; it is extremely unusual both in legal practice drafting to have contracts of this nature. If you read from 16 to 59, these are standard contracts. This is the most unusual thing I have seen in legislation.

Agreements normally are put in books and there is a reason for that. The reason, Chairperson, is that you leave flexibility of contracts. I am addressing him because when we have an arbitration clause, you cannot dictate to the investor the site. In arbitration practice, it could be anywhere including Addis Ababa or Rwanda which are also arbitration seats or London or Paris. We leave that to negotiation. We do not put it as law because you are going to throw away your investor.

I was in a conference in AddisAbaba and there is a reason they do not want to come to Nairobi. They prefer to go to Addis Ababa or Rwanda. It is bad practice to have that. Secondly---

On a point of order Madam Temporary Speaker.

What is your point of order?

Order, Hon. Members! Please consult quietly so that we can listen to the hon. Member.

Madam Temporary Speaker, there is a difference between the seat of the arbitration and the law applicable. I have done arbitration for Kenyans and the law is the law of England. That is the difference but we leave it to drafting.

Secondly, we have not enough on environmental impact and social reports. It is not here or done well.

Thirdly, if we look at Section 28 of the Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA) , there is something called deposit bonds rules. The people who are going to do petroleum exploration are going to put Kenyans at risk like the Thange Oil Tragedy. We must ask them to commit to a bond so that just in case there is an oil spillage or disaster, there is money available. We must commit them because the law under EMCA is there. There is no contradiction in reiterating it.

form of notice so that you do not just say that notice has been given yet the form of notice is not described. Is it notice by advert? It must be specific so that when you give notice, then people will turn out to know that their land is being explored and that there is a survey going on.

Thank you, Senator. Proceed, Sen. (Dr.) Kabaka.

God is great! Finally!

We have two minutes for Sen. Farhiya. She will have three more minutes tomorrow.

Madam Temporary Speaker, hon. Senators are consulting loudly. I do not know whether they are asking me to stop. What is going on?

Hon. Senators, I am looking at the time. It is not upon you to look at the time.

Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker, that I have finally got the opportunity.

This is not a problem of Turkana County as other contributors have said. The area around Lake Victoria has 46 gazetted drilling blocs with the area around Lake Victoria designated as Bloc 12 D and has been assigned to Tullow Oil. When we debate this matter, I am conscious that one day, oil will be struck in Lake Victoria. The decision we make today will come to haunt us.

Madam Temporary Speaker, due to limitations of time, let me just refer this House to Article 71 of the Constitution. It talks about the role of Parliament in ratifying transactions relating to natural resources. Besides that, Parliament passed a Bill, now an Act of Parliament that is called Natural Resources Transactions Subject to Parliamentary Ratification. One of those transactions listed there is extraction of crude oil. How can it be today that an entire Ministry and Government can come up with a Bill that excludes parliamentary role in scrutiny and ratification of these agreements?

It will also be important that this nation is informed of what happened when President Obama came to Kenya. Kenya committed to be a signatory to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative where they said they would do certain things in six months. The issues of transparency, accountability and the agreements that are signed--- We know globally that oil contracts are the most opaque---

I would wish to join those who believe that a greater conversation is required for us collectively as Parliament to come up with a position and a Bill that will support oil exploration, not just in Turkana but in Lake Victoria, Migingo Island, Isiolo and other parts of the country.

I beg to move that we hold that consultation before we subject this matter to a vote.

Let us have Sen. Wario. We might take a few more people if you can reduce your contribution to three minutes.

Asante, Bibi Spika wa Muda.

Order, hon. Members. Consult quietly.

Asante Bibi Spika wa Muda. Kwa wale ambao hawafahamu Kiswahili vizuri wanaona ni tofauti sana kusema Bibi Spika na Bi. Spika kwa sababu Bi.ni ufupi wakusema Bibi.

Bi Spika wa Muda, sikupata nafasi wakati wa mwanzo kabisa, lakini ningependa Seneti hii, ikiondoka hapa, iende katika Kaunti ya Tana River wakati tutakapoenda katika---

Thank you, Senator. Proceed, Sen. Pareno.

Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker, for giving me these two minutes. I support this Bill, but with the amendments that are being proposed. I want to see a Bill that cushions the interest of the public. I also want to see a Bill that will not allow exploration to be exploitation of our people.

Why do I say that, Madam Temporary Speaker? You will remember that when this oil business started in Kenya, we were told that there were land speculators who go out to speculate. When exploration is being done, their business is to speculate for purposes of fleecing the communities of their land and their resources.

Madam Temporary Speaker, I would want to know how much has been picked from the public. I have seen some schedules that show that public hearing was done and that some comments that were picked from the stakeholders. How much---

Order, Hon. Members! Please consult quietly so that we can listen to the hon. Member.

Madam Temporary Speaker, I want to see a Bill that cushions the public interest. It should be a Bill that is a result of public participation, where the stakeholders have been heard. It should be a Bill that takes into account the proposals that have been made after a public hearing.

Madam Temporary Speaker, what is the use of a public hearing? You carry out a public hearing so that you can pick the views of those people. However, if those views are completely disregarded, then there is no use for us, as a Senate, to do public hearings on any Bill.

There must be honesty, transparency and trust between the stakeholders and those who come to explore our resources. There must be some sort of control so that we do not just allow people to roam all over, saying that they are exploring for resources, yet they are kicking out people in the name of compulsory acquisition of land. We have had a very bad experience; the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) compensation was not properly done.

I hope that this Bill will take into account that we need proper guidelines on compensation, how to explore and acquire land for purposes of this exploration.

Madam Temporary Speaker, I saw a provision that says that they will give notice that they are coming to explore your land. The notice is 15 days. I was wondering on the

form of notice so that you do not just say that notice has been given yet the form of notice is not described. Is it notice by advert? It must be specific so that when you give notice, then people will turn out to know that their land is being explored and that there is a survey going on.

Thank you, Senator. Proceed, Sen. (Dr.) Kabaka.

God is great! Finally!

We have two minutes for Sen. Farhiya. She will have three more minutes tomorrow.

Madam Temporary Speaker, I thank you for giving me this opportunity. I shed light on this Bill not because of the content of the Bill. Let us not discuss about throwing out this Bill. If it means that the Senators go to a retreat and discuss this Bill to be passed, that is the way we should go. I had an opportunity to work in Turkana. From Independence up to now, they have been told that they are not developing because they do not have resources. Now they have resources.

The longer we delay the implementation of this Bill, the much more problems we will encounter. If you throw away this Bill, imagine how long it will take to bring it back, the suffering you will still subject those people to and the opportunities wasted for this country. This Bill needs to cover every part of the country. At this point, Turkana has oil is being explored. The longer we delay making laws for this sector, the much more suffering we are subjecting the people. Conflict can also arise out of delaying this Bill.

Madam Temporary Speaker, hon. Senators are consulting loudly. I do not know whether they are asking me to stop. What is going on?

Hon. Senators, I am looking at the time. It is not upon you to look at the time.

Madam Temporary Speaker ---

Hon. Senators, having said that, it is now 6.30 p.m., time to interrupt the business of the Senate. The House, therefore, stands adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, 26th September, 2018 at 2.30 p.m.

The Senate rose at 6.30 p.m.