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{
"id": 1016834,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1016834/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Sakaja",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": {
"id": 13131,
"legal_name": "Johnson Arthur Sakaja",
"slug": "johnson-arthur-sakaja"
},
"content": "Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) sector is a country whose economy will grow. If you go to many of these countries that we consider to be doing well economically or first world, you will notice in the streets of New York, Washington DC, China, and Singapore that in every 10 metres, there is a shop. Every five metres, there is a business. It is the SME sector that holds together the economies of those countries. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, what we have seen in this country is that many people who are in that sector are ignored by the Government. This Bill, for me, is a culmination--- I am glad that Sen. Farhiya really pushed us to do this together. She is also a Member of the Nairobi Delegation. Therefore, this is also a Nairobi Bill. We have realized that we provided 30 per cent for young people, women and PWD to register their businesses. However, they do business with Government, but they not paid. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I know of a case of a few people. There is a lady who committed suicide after not being paid during the Kenyatta International ConventionCentre (KICC) fiasco or after the United Nations Conference on Trade andDevelopment (UNCTAD). Many young people are even saying that what we gave them was not a gift, but it was a curse. They would rather not even have gotten into procurement because they have made commitments, they get loans, they supply to Government entities, but those Government entities never prioritize paying them what they are owed. It is for obvious reasons. I am glad Sen. Farhiya has alluded to it. That many times, those young people cannot give you kickback. If you are an accounting officer, they do not give kickbacks. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I can give you a very clear example. For a long time, and I am glad that it has changed, if you did business with Nairobi City County, and you were paid - that time they would even write for you a payment to Cooperative Bank, City Hall Way Branch. If you go there, unless some two gentlemen make a phone call, you will not be paid. The first thing they do, they give you a percentage of what you are owed. You have to go, get it in cash, bring to them and then they give you the rest of your money. I have had to help so many business people in this city to get their payments from the two Governments; the former County Government led by the former Governor and the current one. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, this morning, a business person who has constructed for us one of our very beautiful markets told me that his certificate which he asked for last of Kshs13 million has been stopped because he has not given a kickback of Kshs1.5 million. He said that he has given so many that he started asking whether he is just a cashier because he has no profit margin. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, corruption of looking for 10 per cent and kickbacks is the reason why we have a compendium of stalled projects. They are so many because many accounting officers are only excited about a project when it is starting. During the procurement process, when you are biding, is where you get your 10 per cent. After that, they leave it, they do not pay for it, and they go on to the next one where they can get a 10 per cent. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, this Bill seeks to outlaw any delayed payment. The Public Procurement and Disposal Act already provide that for anybody to procure The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}