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{
"id": 1575982,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575982/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3918,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Funyula, ODM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) Ojiambo Oundo",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Hon. Temporary Speaker, it is sometimes difficult to deal with this matter. Just a few days ago, during the Budget process, similar recommendations of a 60-day timeline were made. The same timeline was recommended when we were doing the Supplementary Budget. Hon. Temporary Speaker, one day you will have to guide us on when the 60 days start and end because it is becoming a boring song. The Report is not very clear on exactly what is happening, and that is why the Member who was asked to second the Motion had nothing useful to add. The timing of these fundamental Supplementary Budgets, whether under Articles 114 or 223 of the Constitution, is highly suspicious. Accountants will tell you that it is important to clean up the books at the end of a financial year, but there are always restatements that can happen after the financial year. Hon. Temporary Speaker, if you received Ksh1 billion right now, how would you absorb it between now and Monday? Something is wrong somewhere. If it were a recurring expenditure, we could argue that there is a loan under the CFS that we had forgotten to repay, which is due on Friday. We could understand that. How the National Treasury can forget the maturity of a loan is very baffling. Everybody would imagine that the recurrent expenditure for salaries, allowances, and remuneration for constitutional officeholders is fixed. I am probably not an expert on the issue of Supplementary Budgets under the CFS, but if you give Hon. (Dr) Makali Mulu an opportunity to speak on this Motion, he can educate the uneducated. Otherwise, I have nothing useful to add other than being left in Wonderland. How can the CFS have a Supplementary Budget at the tail-end of the financial year?"
},
{
"id": 1575983,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575983/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3919,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Funyula, ODM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) Ojiambo Oundo",
"speaker": null,
"content": "The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
},
{
"id": 1575984,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575984/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3920,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Funyula, ODM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) Ojiambo Oundo",
"speaker": null,
"content": "Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker."
},
{
"id": 1575985,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575985/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3921,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. David Ochieng’",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Next is Hon. Makali Mulu. Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning, wait for a minute. Let us hear Hon. Makali Mulu."
},
{
"id": 1575986,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575986/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3922,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Kitui Central, WDM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) Makali Mulu",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I can explain some scenarios that necessitate a Supplementary Budget for CFS expenditures. Hon. Members, you know well that most of our external debt is in foreign currency, such as dollars and euros. One of the reasons for a supplementary budget is a change in the exchange rate, which could trigger the need for additional resources for repayment. Once the rates change, you will automatically have more than you budgeted for. Another situation occurs when tabulating the loans due; if you miss one that is due within the year and needs to be paid, you must factor in that amount. In my view, Consolidated Fund Services (CFS) is the easiest option for managing supplementary budgets because, once it is approved, you only need to focus on making the payments. Some of the earlier issues we were discussing require procurement, and you may lack time. However, there is a way to address this. Hon. Temporary Speaker, regarding this Report, the challenge we face with CFS expenditures is the budget deficit. Every financial year, we address the budget deficit. For instance, we have agreed that it will be 4.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) for the Financial Year 2025/2026. When the Chairperson presented the Budget summary, 4.5 per cent of our total Budget amounted to Ksh876 billion. However, when Hon. Mbadi, the Cabinet Secretary, specified the amount to be borrowed, he indicated Ksh920 billion, resulting in a difference of Ksh47 billion. Thus, the Report approved here by the Public Debt and Privatisation Committee was Ksh876 billion, while the Cabinet Secretary's Report was Ksh920 billion. So, when the budget deficit fluctuates, it complicates the predictability of the Budget. We have a budget that is a moving target, and as a House, we must firm up our approach. Once we agree on the amount to be borrowed by the Government in this financial year, we should not allow these figures to change midway, which would lead to the unpredictability we currently experience. All said and done, CFS expenditures represent the highest expenditure item in our Budget, now approximately Ksh1.2 trillion. This leaves minimal fiscal space for other activities. As a House, we need to deliberate seriously about managing CFS expenditures. Within these expenditures, the most significant item is the payment of public debt, encompassing both interest repayments and principal payments. This is a serious matter requiring our attention to assist the country in addressing it. Hon. Oundo raised the issue of timing. I have been listening since morning, including your contribution to the earlier Motion. We, as a House, should not apologise for the National Treasury's inadequacies. The pressure we face stems from the late presentation of budgets, which does not allow sufficient time for the House to process them. We must establish a firm deadline, instructing that if a Supplementary Budget is not submitted one month before the end of the financial year, it will not be considered. This will enable us to examine the Budget in detail and ascertain what payments will be made. Hon. Temporary Speaker, Article 223 has been controversial. Since we joined this House together, we have engaged extensively in the Budget and Appropriations Committee, consistently discussing Article 223 and its loopholes regarding the National Treasury's utilisation. I wish we could dedicate more time to reviewing proposed expenditures under Article 223, as these represent some of the easier avenues used by certain technocrats to misallocate public resources. As a House, we must discuss this issue and take a firm position. I recall a past discussion when Hon. Mbadi was a Member of Parliament, where we both"
},
{
"id": 1575987,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575987/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3923,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Kitui Central, WDM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) Makali Mulu",
"speaker": null,
"content": "The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
},
{
"id": 1575988,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575988/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3924,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Kitui Central, WDM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) Makali Mulu",
"speaker": null,
"content": "advocated for a thorough scrutiny of Article 223 in the National Treasury to ensure its proper utilisation. Otherwise, we risk turning the 13th Parliament into a mere talking shop regarding budget matters, which is unfortunate. We must treat this issue with the seriousness it deserves. Nevertheless, I support this Report to ensure that all necessary payments for CFS expenditures are processed before June. I submit."
},
{
"id": 1575989,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575989/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3925,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. David Ochieng’",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Thank you. Member for Kibra."
},
{
"id": 1575990,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575990/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3926,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Kibra, ODM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Peter Orero",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Thank you, Honourable Speaker. I rise to join my colleagues in discussing the long-standing issue of public debt in this country. I believe we need to itemise these debts when they are brought to the House for discussion. We must understand what debts we are repaying; otherwise, we could end up paying for air for an extended period. This debt increases every year. It is now about Ksh9 trillion to Ksh10 trillion. When the Cabinet Secretary was here last, he promised to constitute a committee to address the debts he inherited. We remain hopeful that he will uphold his commitment and that the 60- day timelines often set by Cabinet Secretaries will be a thing of the past. As a House, as Hon. (Dr) Makali has said, we need adequate time to review documents. We must not be hurriedly handed materials that should have been available for the past month. Furthermore, concerning Article 223, which is often used to regularise expenditure after the fact, this House must implement measures to ensure that expenditures are approved before being incurred. Otherwise, I support this Motion."
},
{
"id": 1575991,
"url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1575991/?format=api",
"text_counter": 3927,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. David Ochieng’",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Member for Teso South."
}
]
}