HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, POST, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept
{
"count": 1608389,
"next": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=api&page=150583",
"previous": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=api&page=150581",
"results": [
{
"id": 1524012,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524012/?format=api",
"text_counter": 248,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Kathuri",
"speaker_title": "The Deputy Speaker",
"speaker": {
"id": 13590,
"legal_name": "Murungi Kathuri",
"slug": "murungi-kathuri"
},
"content": " We now go back now to the Petition. I request Sen. Mungatana to make his contribution."
},
{
"id": 1524013,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524013/?format=api",
"text_counter": 249,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Mungatana, MGH",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. First of all, I thank the very honored son of this country, Mr. Patrick Ochieng Odindo, for presenting this Petition on the ethics and anti-corruption graft investigation on the West Kano Irrigation Scheme and their failure to act to expectations. I also thank the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries under the leadership of Hon. Senator David Wakoli for ably presenting this report before the Senate. The complaint that Mr. Odindo has presented before the Senate is that 59 farmers groups have suffered tremendous losses of funds that were meant to help them under the West Kano Irrigation Scheme. Between 2009 and 2015, Kshs86 million was allegedly lost, and this was the revolving fund of the West Kano farmers. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir this same gallant son says, between 2015 and 2017, the Scheme Farmers’ Cooperative Society leaders who managed the farm machinery fund could not account for the money that was donated by the Kenya government and the government of Japan. The Rice Sales Fund, which was again a donation to these 59 groups of farmers was lost. The residents of West Kano Irrigation Scheme made these allegations before the Western Region of the Anti-Corruption Commission, but nothing was done. The question that we need to ask ourselves is, what is it that the Anti-Corruption Commission was doing in Western Region all these years? How can it be that the EACC makes a decision to devolve its work to various regions, and the people in those regions, in this particular case, the Western Region, are not happy or satisfied with the work that you are doing? What is it that needs to be done to this Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission for it to wake up to its responsibility? These people are simply saying, “we have done everything we could correctly, but we have been let down by a government body. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, Kshs86 million is not small money, especially in the rural areas. This money was misappropriated, but nobody has been arrested. The people have made a report; nothing has been done by the EACC. What are the people supposed to do? They have looked for all other ways to deal with this matter and have landed on this Senate. This Senate in its recommendation, has said, “let us move away from the EACC and let us go to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).” This is the first The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1524014,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524014/?format=api",
"text_counter": 250,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Mungatana, MGH",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "recommendation, that the DCI now must carry proper investigation. time does not run out on criminal culpability. The DCI is the one that deals with criminality. These people are walking. Some have bought nice vehicles. Some have bought nice houses in West Kano. The people can tell, “this man or woman was involved in that scandal.” It was our money that we saved in this revolving fund that has bought him a nice house; that has made his family to get more acreage of land, that has helped him to drive a car, and he is walking free. Mr. Deputy Speaker, something needs to be done. We are agreeing with the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries that the DCI must act fast. Within the four months that they have been given, something must be done. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was here yesterday, complaining that when people go to government agencies and nothing takes place, there is a lot of fury within the community. Regarding Tana River County, yesterday I was engaging the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration and saying that somebody was killed by Kenya Wild Life Service (KWS) officers. A report was made and nothing has been done. When people live in this kind of society, anger grows in them. People start hating leaders and the agencies of government. We start wondering what the problem is or what has happened to people. It is because of inaction when people are making genuine complaints such as this one where Kshs86 million has gone; the culprits are known, because they were officials of this West Kano Irrigation Scheme and they are just walking around. When you look at the response that was given by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), they are not telling us anything. In fact, they are themselves indicted by the information that the people are putting here that the West Kano just went to sleep. One of the recommendations they have given is that this devolution of the EACC function should be relooked at so that people are able to move away from their regional offices, come directly to Nairobi, and make these complaints. This is one of the recommendations that we have put in this Senate report. Something needs to be done about corruption in this country. We need to start doing and I am asking the EACC to take more seriously their responsibility as far as engaging the public in spreading the anti-corruption message. You are not going to help just by arresting people on one Friday, come with cameras and so on. We need to also take these lessons to schools. When I was growing up, we were taught not to walk over grass. When I was very young and attending school, and to date, I would never pocket or walk over grass. It is not inside me. When you are traveling with your children and you try to take a bottle of water and throw it through the wind, they will not allow you. Why? Because they were taught in school that you should not pollute the environment. However, when it comes to the anti-corruption message, the current generation is as if the end justifies the means. Why? Because this is not taught in any school. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1524015,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524015/?format=api",
"text_counter": 251,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Mungatana, MGH",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "The children we are bringing up are people who just do whatever you can to get rich as early as possible and retire by the time you are 40 years old and travel the world. How you do it, nobody cares because that is what we have taught them. The EACC needs to be serious. These regional offices like the western region; they should not just sit there and create failure like the one they have in this particular incidence. You know, bringing a shame to a whole institution because of your failure to act, they should be proactive. In addition, I am not talking about even just that region alone. Across all these regional offices, what does it take just to visit schools? How much effort is it within the town you are living in to just spend 30 minutes visiting shules and telling people that we need to do something more? Kenyans need to grow a generation of people who will reject corruption, who will want to earn an honest living. However, they will not do it. They will sit in their offices, farmers will bring in their complaints and instead of working to solve these problems, they will collude with those people who now have in possession their money and not help the cause for which they were employed to do. This Senate calls out the EACC, and I have said it before and I will say it again, even in the Senate Public Accounts Committee. We call governors and they come before the Senate County Public Accounts Committee. Then, you find clear evidence of misappropriation of funds. The EACC office is seated there. They are there taking notes and, of course, allowances for attending Senate committees. However, after that, you hear nothing. No action has been taken. Nothing has been done. Therefore, people, they have started to normalize corruption. EACC needs to pull up its socks. Pulling up its socks is not just arrest. You need to be proactive. You need to, like when farmers complain like this, what was wrong with that officer? Why could he not move from his western region office to go and sit with the farmers, call a meeting, hear them out? Why are people in Government offices yet they do not want to talk to people? They become big. They roll up their windows, up their vehicles, tinted windows. They get security. They do not talk to them. They do not even walk. It is terrible. These are Government officers. They are not even elected, so they cannot be worried that maybe people will stop you and ask you this and that. You are an officer of ethics and anti-corruption. You are a County Commissioner or you are a Deputy County Commissioner (DCC). Why this thing of avoiding people and big man syndrome? Why can people not take these positions and actually serve people? I fully support the submissions by this Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries and we pray that the EACC is sitting where they are sitting. They listen to us and do something more. I again congratulate Mr. Patrick Odindo for taking up this matter. May these recommendations be carried out as fast as possible. We want the DCI now to focus on who stole the money. The evidence is still there. They go and catch these people. This will put a rest to the problems that the West Kano Irrigation Scheme has been experiencing for so many years. With those many remarks, I beg to support the report of the Committee. Thank you."
},
{
"id": 1524016,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524016/?format=api",
"text_counter": 252,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Kathuri",
"speaker_title": "The Deputy Speaker",
"speaker": {
"id": 13590,
"legal_name": "Murungi Kathuri",
"slug": "murungi-kathuri"
},
"content": " Next is Sen. Dan Maanzo. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1524017,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524017/?format=api",
"text_counter": 253,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Maanzo",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": {
"id": 13589,
"legal_name": "Maanzo Daniel Kitonga",
"slug": "maanzo-daniel-kitonga"
},
"content": "Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, thank you, for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this very important matter. At that particular moment, I was a member of the Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries. When this matter came, it was a very serious matter. I give my thanks to Prof. Anyang’-Nyong'o, the Governor for Kisumu, when we invited him to come and share his insights; he came, and he did not support this corruption issue. In fact, he wanted it investigated. He was very disappointed. This money had come from the Japanese government. The Japanese Government even provided tractors and all the equipment, which could make sure that rice growing thrives in Kano. Then there were cooperatives, very well organized cooperatives, but highly frustrated by individuals when it came to this. Some of the accused people, when they were brought before us, they pretended that they cannot even speak Kiswahili. They can only speak Dholuo and we have to translate and waste a lot of time. You could see clearly, these were the thieves, and they were pretending. My big disappointment goes to EACC. When they came to preside over this matter, they were the ones who were to investigate and recover the money, and they really looked very uncooperative to the committee. They looked like they did not know. In fact, it is around that time when some people were trying to amend the law to remove the Chairperson of the EACC. The Chairperson of the EACC is a very forthright gentleman, his track record is known. He has presided over many funds and projects over a long time. As an architect, they have been successful. He is one of the most honest people I can trust in that commission, the moment you do that to the Chair of EACC, maybe the CEO could also perform. Below that, everybody frustrated the fight against corruption in this particular case, and it was very frustrating even as a committee. Having invited EACC, they were uncooperative, and you could see. Hon. Mundigi was there. The EACC was really defeating the ends of fighting corruption. I knew and I said, one day, we shall overcome as a country. This is because if you have an EACC which, first of all, has its own fights, and then suddenly, when there is such a serious, glaring corruption case of money donated by the Japanese government - if you mishandle this - you are telling other agencies not to help our farmers; you are telling other people not to make donations to Kenya; you are telling other countries that we have no structures to protect the money. Similarly, was the National Irrigation Board. Very frustrating. In fact, the National Irrigation Board behaves in a similar way to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Authority (EACC). You may have a good chairperson and a good Chief Executive Officer (CEO), but have employees who squander, collude and become part of the scheme to steal from Kenyans and international funders who are sympathetic with our case. The worst of it was Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB), which I believe should be investigated thoroughly. As a bank, you cannot allow proceeds of theft of public resources to be channelled through and hidden in your bank. The bank managers and the people who dealt with that were aiding the thieves. That could be seen from the evidence adduced. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
},
{
"id": 1524018,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524018/?format=api",
"text_counter": 254,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Maanzo",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": {
"id": 13589,
"legal_name": "Maanzo Daniel Kitonga",
"slug": "maanzo-daniel-kitonga"
},
"content": "Sen. Cherarkey has suggested that we court martial these people or sentence them to death by shooting at Uhuru Park. However, I want to tell him that for us to be able to do so, we will need to change the Constitution of Kenya and bring back the death sentence. You and I are members of the Committee on Justice, Legal Affairs and Human Rights. Sen. Wakili Sigei is the chairperson of that committee. As a committee, we need to strengthen and relook at the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission Act and the law that punishes people who have stolen public funds. We should bring back the life sentence punishment. We should also strengthen the mechanism of recovering money stolen from the public. This was a very embarrassing case. The Japanese Embassy used to follow the proceedings and would also get frustrated. We must prove to the world that Kenyans are not thieves."
},
{
"id": 1524019,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524019/?format=api",
"text_counter": 255,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Maanzo",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": {
"id": 13589,
"legal_name": "Maanzo Daniel Kitonga",
"slug": "maanzo-daniel-kitonga"
},
"content": "The traditional setting of Kambas, Kalenjins, Luo and even Embus never encouraged stealing of other people’s property. The belief was that you would be followed by evil things if you steal people’s property. Unfortunately, we have learnt from the colonialists to be thieves, corrupt and loot public funds. We must be serious and our recommendations must be taken seriously by the DCI. I hope the DCI will not behave like EACC. I hope their investigators will not be compromised. I am sure that those who stole that money and bought those cars are now broke. This is because you never benefit from stolen funds. I am sure they do not have money right now to bribe or compromise anybody. They should be followed. We must bring back the dignity of co-operatives in this country. This co-operative was frustrated. We must embrace good practices of taking care of public properties. The spare parts of the tractors would be exchanged with old spare parts of private owned tractors. As a result, the tractors for the co-operative tractors would be grounded yet it had been donated by the Japanese Government. We want to give confidence to the Japanese Government and any other government in the world, including the Unites States of America (USA), that wants to work with us. We should show them that when donor funds comes here, we use it well."
},
{
"id": 1524020,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524020/?format=api",
"text_counter": 256,
"type": "scene",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "[The Deputy Speaker (Sen. Kathuri) left the Chair]"
},
{
"id": 1524021,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524021/?format=api",
"text_counter": 257,
"type": "scene",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "[The Temporary Speaker (Sen. Wakili Sigei) in the Chair]"
}
]
}