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{
"id": 1524032,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524032/?format=api",
"text_counter": 268,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Joe Nyutu",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for the opportunity. I also rise to support this Petition by Mr. Patrick Ochieng Odindo on corruption at West Kano Irrigation Scheme. I commend this gentleman because he had done research at the time and before he came to present this Petition to the Senate. He was able to identify the funds that have been pilfered or misappropriated by those that run this particular irrigation scheme. Mr. Ochieng Odindo talked about a revolving fund that the Government funded. At one point in time, disbursing about Kshs86 million that cannot be accounted for. There are also machines and accessories, in the form of aid by the Government of Kenya and the Government of the Republic of Japan. He was also able to talk about a rice sales fund and many other funds that the management of this particular irrigation scheme cannot account for. The EACC also stands accused in this particular Petition by Mr. Ochieng Odindo. When we look at this particular Petition, any Kenyan of goodwill who values this country must raise a voice and say no to corruption. Since there is no way all these funds are not accounted for and we cannot separate this and say that this is not corruption. It is corruption. We have to look at this Petition in a very broad way. This is because corruption is a cancer that continues eating up the sectors of Government, state corporations and many other areas. Poor Kenyans are not getting services. The committee tasked with this particular matter should unearth all corruption in this particular scheme. This will ensure that in future whoever is given a responsibility to oversee the appropriate use of public funds does exactly that. We have very many incidents of corruption. The most recent is the matter of the Social Health Authority (SHA). As we look at this Petition, we must also talk about the concerns expressed by the Auditor-General of the Republic of Kenya. There has been a lot of corruption. We are informed that the system at SHA is privately owned and not run by Government. It is run by individuals who take away 2.5 per cent of all the contributions that are made. These are things we should not allow in our country. Otherwise, Kenyans will continue suffering because of those people who are taking advantage of gaps in systems. They are using the same system to take away funds meant for public good for private use. As we look at this Petition, we must all ask ourselves, what are we going to do? The Auditor-General is very particular that hers ends at the point where she lays bare the facts and the misappropriation of public funds and the rest lies with Parliament. That is why we, as a House, must come up with ways and means of making sure that the rot that is exposed by the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) and other agencies like the Controller of Budget (CoB), actions are taken against anybody who does not do what is supposed to be done as the Public Finance Management Act. This Petition should open up our eyes. We must take very stern action against those that will be found to have taken advantage, misappropriated or embezzled the funds that were availed to the West Kano Irrigation Scheme. The other thing is the money that is sent to state corporations. The Government keeps bailing out state corporations that operate at a loss all the time. When we talk about 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": 1524033,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524033/?format=api",
"text_counter": 269,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Joe Nyutu",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "that, Kenya Airways (KQ) comes to mind. Until last year, successive governments have been bailing out KQ, which has been operating at a loss all these years. Before we bail out any state corporation, we must do a thorough assessment of the application of funds and corporate governance. We must ask ourselves whether a state agency or corporation has exercised good corporate governance before we avail public resources to such organisations. I say this because looking at the Petition that was brought by Mr. Ochieng, Government’s funds have been placed in the hands of the managers of that irrigation scheme that have been pilfered. As a House, Kenyans and leaders in this country, we must ask ourselves why would we continue bailing out public institutions that run at a loss. Why are these losses coming up? Are they coming because there is corruption? We cannot continue churning out big amounts of money to organisations that do not want to incorporate corporate governance in their structures. As I conclude, I encourage other Kenyans that when they find something inappropriate happening with a public institution, they have the liberty and right to come to this or the other House and file a Petition in order for that matter to be interrogated. I commend Mr. Ochieng for being a patriotic citizen who did not just sit back like many others would have done, but he got concerned and exercised his right by placing a Petition in this House. We must encourage Kenyans to come to this House to petition about any matter so that this House can look into these matters because it is their right. I thank you."
},
{
"id": 1524034,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524034/?format=api",
"text_counter": 270,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wakili Sigei",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Thank you, Sen. Nyutu, for your contribution. Hon. Members, there being no other Senator interested in contributing to this report, I ask the Mover, Sen. Wafula, to reply."
},
{
"id": 1524035,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524035/?format=api",
"text_counter": 271,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wafula",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": {
"id": 348,
"legal_name": "Davis Wafula Nakitare",
"slug": "davis-nakitare"
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"content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for this opportunity. I beg to reply by thanking the Members of the Committee of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries for spending their time and commitment in ensuring that we listen to the stakeholders and the petitioner in this matter. I thank the secretariat for equally taking their time to dedicate themselves to listening to this Petition. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, as you have heard Members contribute to this Petition, it is very clear that Kenyans have begun to have trust and confidence in the Senate, specifically the Standing Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries because agriculture is the backbone of the sustainability of Kenyans. The Government is pumping many resources into agriculture, livestock and fisheries. In this particular context, it is important that the county governments and the national Government employees take their work seriously, commit themselves and ensure value for money. The story of the West Kano Plain Irrigation Scheme is similar to many other schemes in the country. Cooperatives are suffering because of poor management, corruption, tribalism and high hardiness. As the Petition shows, EACC has failed to up its game and listen to the people's cries and pleas. In the report, the committee brings out the salient issues affecting this scheme. Looking at how the Ministry of Cooperative and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises 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": 1524036,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524036/?format=api",
"text_counter": 272,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wafula",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": {
"id": 348,
"legal_name": "Davis Wafula Nakitare",
"slug": "davis-nakitare"
},
"content": "Development was handling documents and exchanging with the officials and the complainant clearly shows us that in spite of the Government's effort to bolden and strengthen cooperatives, if we are not careful, we will be entrenching corruption. People who do not have the goodwill and the interest of the people in these cooperatives will continue with their corrupt practices. It is a wake-up call to the Ministry of Cooperatives to ensure that they give the right people the opportunity to serve and flush out corrupt individuals who are hell-bent on manipulating, stifling the space of farmers and galloping their hard-earned money. I do not want to take much time. I thank the hon. Senators who have contributed to this Motion. They have equally spoken on the will and aspirations of Kenyans. I do not want to forget that agriculture is a devolved function. When you see Kenyans not running to the county assemblies with petitions, it means there is a problem. If these farmers cannot take their petitions to the county executives, there is a problem. This is a wake-up call to other committees. By the time these people move to the Senate, we need to pay enough attention to the monies at the devolved level. We have the Cherry Fund. Do we know what is happening in the Cherry Fund? We have lots of money going to fisheries. Do we know what is happening there? I want to commit, as the Committee for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, that we will leave no stone unturned. We are headed to the planting season. Subsidised fertiliser is available at a normal known price. As Sen. Mungatana said yesterday, you will realise that people are buying fertiliser at Kshs2,500 and selling it to farmers at Kshs7,500, which is immoral. The county government knows that the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) is selling fertiliser at Kshs2,500. The county proceeds to procure fertiliser for Kshs6,000. This is a blatant theft of public resources. Therefore, as a Committee, we will not hesitate to call them out and demand that they be respectful. Those of us who have contributed, Sen. Mungatana, my good friend, Senator from West Pokot, Sen. Maanzo, Sen. Joe Nyutu, and Sen. Munyi Mundigi, I appreciate your contribution and your commitment. I assure you that, as a committee, we will do what is necessary and possible. Finally, on the implementation and recommendations, as a committee, we will push that the implementation of these recommendations is done within the purview of the Constitution and the mandate given by the Senate, to ensure that the people of this scheme get their rightful share of the taxpayer's money. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, pursuant to Standing Order No.66(3), I request that you defer putting of the Question to a later date to allow Members to have a quorum for voting."
},
{
"id": 1524037,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524037/?format=api",
"text_counter": 273,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wakili Sigei",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Thank you so much, Sen. Wafula. Hon. Senators, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order No.66(3), the putting of the Question to this particular report is deferred to our next sitting."
},
{
"id": 1524038,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524038/?format=api",
"text_counter": 274,
"type": "scene",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "(Putting of the Question on the Motion deferred)"
},
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"id": 1524039,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524039/?format=api",
"text_counter": 275,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wakili Sigei",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": "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": 1524040,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524040/?format=api",
"text_counter": 276,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Wakili Sigei",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": "Hon. Members, for the convenience of the House, I will rearrange the Order Paper. I direct that Order No.17 be called out. Let us have Sen. Murgor who is the Chairperson of the Committee on Labour and Social Welfare."
},
{
"id": 1524041,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1524041/?format=api",
"text_counter": 277,
"type": "heading",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "MOTION"
}
]
}