MP asks State to distribute BBI report to public
Mogotio Member of Parliament (MP) Daniel Tuitoek has asked the national government to distribute copies of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report for wananchi to read and internalise the contents and recommendations of the report.
Tuitoek said Kenyans at the grassroots will only participate effectively in discussing the report during public forums after accessing and reading the contents of the document and thus come up with informed decisions.
Speaking on Thursday at Mogotio Vocational Training Centre grounds during Jamhuri Day celebrations, the legislator said without reading and understanding the report in its totality leaders will have hard time guiding public participations at their respective counties.
The celebrations were presided over by county commissioner Henry Wafula and attended by, amon others, several MCAs.
He said about 100 MPs drawn from Rift Valley region met recently at a workshop in Naivasha and unanimously resolved to back the report and were only waiting for BBI taskforce committee to provide direction in the subsequent phases of the process.
“It is not true that we as Rift Valley legislators are against the report. We are 100 percent in agreement with the contents and recommendations of the report. Let nobody doubt our commitment towards the report,” said Tuitoek.
He added that MPs from the Rift region were ready to support the implementation of the document whether through parliamentary or referendum route.
However, he said, it was good to scrutinise some sections that require to be passed through a simple parliamentary legislation rather than subjecting the entire report to a referendum to cut down on cost.
On milk prices, Tuitoek expressed concern over the sharp decline in producer prices of milk occasioned by increased supply and stiff competition from cheap milk from the East Africa region.
He urged the national government to consider restricting the amount of raw and processed milk entering the country to save the dairy sub-sector from collapse.
Tuitoek said milk prices have dropped from around Sh35 last year currently to about Sh 20, a situation which farmers were unable to make a break even.
The legislator maintained that unless importation of milk from neighbouring countries was restricted, dairy farmers relying on milk production for their livelihoods will be subjected to poverty.
Other sub-sectors, he also said, should be protected include that of maize, tea and coffee which are currently experiencing unfavourable market prices.
- KNA
