Sexual harassment tops queries raised by women MPs
An ongoing parliamentary sitting. Women MPs have mainly raised queries on sexual harassment, insecurity and education.
What you need to know:
- Kericho Woman Rep Beatrice Kemei tasked the Departmental Committee on Labour to look into allegations of sexual harassment of female workers on various tea estates in her county.
- Early this month, Kiambu Woman Rep Anne Muratha issued a statement on alleged mistreatment of female employees at Brown Cheese Company Limited in Limuru.
Female members of Parliament are mostly seeking statements on issues related to sexual violence against women, insecurity and agriculture.
A detailed analysis of statements sought in the National Assembly between October 2022 and July 6, 2023, shows that female lawmakers have been seeking answers from the government on issues that mainly affect women and children.
Kericho Woman Representative Beatrice Kemei tasked the Departmental Committee on Labour to look into allegations of sexual harassment of female workers on various tea estates in her county.
The committee, led by Runyenjes MP Eric Muchangi, swung into action. The revelations were chilling as witnesses told of how women employees were being sexually assaulted by rogue seniors in two multinationals.
The workers narrated their ordeals as the lawmakers listened in disbelief to how managers and supervisors preyed on desperate women, demanding sexual favours to secure them jobs, promotions, or sparing them long working hours.
They further revealed that as a result of sexual exploitation, a good number of staff had been infected with HIV.
Early this month, Kiambu Woman Rep Anne Muratha breathed fire in Parliament when she issued a statement on alleged mistreatment of female employees at Brown Cheese Company Limited in Limuru.
According to the police, some senior managers at the company were arrested in relation to the incident, where female employees were allegedly strip-searched to identify the person who had disposed of a sanitary pad in the wrong bin. The incident sparked outrage, with female protesters, clad in ‘Komesha Dhuluma za Kijinsia (stop gender-based discrimination)’ T-shirts, throwing unused sanitary towels into the company’s compound.
Kisii Woman Representative Doris Donya in March asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to intervene and bring home Ms Emily Kerubo Nyakwera who was serving a five-year sentence in South Sudan.
According to Ms Donya, Emily, 25, who graduated with a Bachelor of Education at the University of Nairobi in 2018, was unfairly thrown into prison on trumped-up charges.
In February, Kirinyaga Woman Rep Njeri Maina wanted the Committee on Administration and Internal Affairs to investigate an incident in which two brothers were reportedly lynched by Nyumba Kumi officials.
On July 6, Kisumu West MP Rozaah Buyu spent minutes explaining to her colleagues how her constituents were living in fear due to rising insecurity cases.
“Over the last month, we have had violent robberies, sometimes leading to killings of constituents, but targeting business premises. Our trading centres like Dago, Otonglo, Lela, Kisian and Holo, up to Maseno are being targeted for thuggery and, many times, leading to death,” she said.
“When you have cases of such high insecurity, it causes a lot of fear in society. I request immediate attention to security in this area. Can we have a session with the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration to find out what measures can be put in place to lower the escalating insecurity in Kisumu West?”
Kitui Woman Rep Irene Kasalu, in November last year, raised the alarm over the invasion of the county by armed camel herders from Tana River, Wajir, Garissa and Mandera.
She said the move had resulted in injuries, loss of property and encroachment on areas protected for wildlife. She also decried increased banditry cases due to the invasion along the Ngomeni, Nguni, Malalani, and Mutha wards.
Food for pupils
Besides sexual harassment and insecurity, women leaders have been pushing the government to implement the school feeding programme passed by the National Assembly.
Two weeks ago, the Select Committee on Implementation launched a probe into the status of the programme following a statement by Likoni MP Mishi Mboko, who sought updates from the government on the progress made on implementation.
Standing Order 209(2)(a) empowers the Committee on Implementation to scrutinise the resolutions of the House and examine whether or not such decisions and undertakings have been implemented.
On October 25, 2022, the National Assembly approved a motion sponsored by Kakamega Women Rep Elsie Muhanda to have the Ministry of Education develop a school feeding policy to cover basic education learners.
“The intent of that policy, which I supported, was to provide sustenance to all basic education pupils and ensure they can continue with their education without facing hunger challenges in schools,” Ms Mboko stated.
The House further resolved that the ministry sustain the programme to ensure children are maintained in schools for their wellbeing and effective learning.
For her part, Maragwa MP Mary Njoroge Wamaua has also been pushing the government to implement the Crops (Coffee) Regulations, 2022. Marsabit Woman Rep Naomi Jillo Waqo, on the other hand, has been decrying the delayed issuance of National Identity cards to applicants from her county.
