ODM response to Uhuru’s state of the nation SPEECH pt.2

The Government has inexplicably refused to form an inquiry into how the attackers in Westgate got here, even after the president promised this. Yesterday, the National Assembly rejected the report by the National Assembly Security Committee on the attack. We are therefore calling for the constitution of a Parliamentary Select Committee to investigate the Westgate attack. We are also calling for a Parliamentary Select Committee to investigate the rising problem of poaching. We suspect there is more to it than meets the eye. In any case, poaching is part and parcel of our growing security, economic and corruption problems. When a bomb that failed to detonate near the British Airways check-in counter at JKIA late last year, the government shrugged it off as an exploding light-bulb. After the latest attack in Likoni, the Inspector General of Police considered it beneath him to offer an explanation to Kenyans. He let his juniors deal with it. The President and his deputy did not see this as a matter worth their urgent attention. They addressed it in passing on their way to Tanzania. These are signs that the government is off track and does not care. Any discussion of our national security must include recognition and respect for our men and women in uniform. Whether they are fighting in Somalia or walking our increasingly dangerous streets and borders, we salute them. These officers and troops have the gratitude of every Kenya for their courage and the sacrifice they are willing to make on our behalf. But we decry the lack of modern equipment, the absence of opportunities for best training that our officers deserve and their dismal working conditions. Above all, we ask the government to address the issues of deployments and promotions in the police force, especially now that we are under attack and we are counting on these men and women to be motivated enough to protect us. Promotions and deployment in the police force is still dogged by tribalism, nepotism and cronyism, not merit. We must also talk about our military whose prowess we are all too proud of. Because of the courage of our military, Somalia is a much better place today. We know that Somalia still has persistent insurgency to deal with. It continues to be a magnet for international terrorists. But we feel it is time for the Government to present to us a clear plan for ending our presence in Somalia. We are not suggesting that we simply declare the job done and pull out. We are not suggesting we sneak out through the back door. We want a clear plan for transferring responsibility for Somalia’s security to the Somalis. We believe training the Somali forces to take charge must be expedited. We must accelerate Somalia’s economic development, particularly through infrastructure that gives Somalis a stake in achieving a better future. We must also intensify regional and international diplomacy that will deny fuel to the anti-western sentiments that power insurgency in Somalia. We want the government to table before Kenyans a comprehensive plan to protect the nation from terrorism. We have only heard promises and more threats. We want to see the government’s plan to build a military, a police force and an intelligence gathering system that will be second to none. Kenyans are dying because we lack ability to collect timely and reliable intelligence to keep us safe at home. EDUCATION: Even as the government proceeds with the ill-conceived laptops project, we are yet to address the issue of cost of education. It is now more than ten years since fees were abolished in public schools. But we know fees exist and are keeping many children out of school. Parents buy uniforms, text books, desks, school buses, pay motivation fees, and much more. We feel the government must climb the education tree from the bottom. Is education free or not? If it is, why are these many levies being imposed and when will they stop? We continue to caution the government against the extravagant laptops project. It is not realistic. It is not sustainable and it is not a priority. We support IT in learning and we laud the government for championing it. But we advocate for computer labs in all schools instead of laptops for every child at this stage. The cost and built in room for corruption in the acquisition of laptops aside, a bigger question is whether the laptops will actually improve learning. Will reading skills improve because the children have laptops instead of text books? Will children perform better in math and science? Will parents afford the cost of repairs and maintenance? Who will replace crashed or lost and stolen laptops? CORRUPTION: We are concerned about the corruption roulette in government, which Jubilee calls war on corruption. The government admits that thieves have invaded no higher place than the Office of the President.