Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 101094,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/101094/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 328,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Mbadi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 110,
        "legal_name": "John Mbadi Ng'ong'o",
        "slug": "john-mbadi"
    },
    "content": "As we approve any money to the Ministries, we should be sure of what we are doing. We are in the same position we were last year because last year, we reprimanded the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance. We told him that it was unacceptable to just come up with a straight line arithmetic by dividing the budgeted amount by two and asking us for approval. We felt then that this is laziness on the part of the Treasury. We told the Treasury that that was the last time that we were doing that and that next time, we would want a more detailed approach to this request on Vote on Account. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Minister had just vindicated and validated our argument by saying that some Ministries probably need more, some need less. Why did the Treasury not come up with line by line items? Some, they could even ask us to approve a 100 percent, like the money that is needed for referendum, we may need to give it in total. That is why I anticipate that some amendments may be proposed to give money to the Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) fully, but there are lines that do not need the approval of 50 percent. It is my considered opinion that the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Ministry of Finance is taking this House for granted, it is taking things for granted. If they feel that just because it has been a tradition and the Prime Minister said that the practice has been that we give 50 percent. I do not agree with the Prime Minister. If the practice is bad, we do not continue with it. The practice of 50 percent has been because the budgets for the different Ministries are normally approved around November, December. But this time round, according to the law, we are going to approve the Ministerial budgets by, latest, 31st August. Why should we give you 50 percent? You only need money for two months and actually even a quarter is generosity on the part of this House. We should have given you a maximum of two months equivalent of expenditure. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I remember the Budget Committee has a problem with the budget in terms of what was in the policy statement and what was presented before this House. We still expect, as a Committee, an explanation from the Ministry of Finance why there was that variance of Kshs59 billion. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, can you protect me from the shouting and harassment from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance. He is a senior Member of this House. I feel intimidated!"
}