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{
    "id": 1034841,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1034841/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 319,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Endebess, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr.) Robert Pukose",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1458,
        "legal_name": "Robert Pukose",
        "slug": "robert-pukose"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for allowing me to contribute to this Bill. Observation No.23 that the Committee is on receipt of a letter whose reference number is given there, dated 15th April, 2020, addressed to the CEO, KEMSA, Ministry of Health, reads that: “Approving the procurement of goods worth Kshs758,690,583.25 as contained in the schedule annexed to the letter, upon inquiry on the genesis and import of the letter, the PS submitted documentation including several emails clarifying the role of her office in the process. However, the verbal explanation given by the PS was inconsistent with the documentation submitted.” Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, looking at this trend and having listened to the President give a 21-day notice to the EACC and the DCI to investigate, you are left wondering why the PS is still in office. Does it also go in tandem with the DCI, standing and giving an investigation? He has been very fond of going to the media and giving briefings on how investigations are being done and nothing comes out of it. This is something that we need to move away from. It is high time that the President acted on some of these officers. Through this COVID-19 and the pandemic in general as it is no, many frontline workers have perished. As you can see, it is not only the frontline workers, but every citizen of this country. It is a serious matter that we need to put our act together as a country. When we look at KEMSA having committed many of these heists where people come up with vicarious companies which are formed two weeks into operations and are given tenders worth billions of money, then you realise that it is a big scheme. I like the recommendation by the Committee that the investigative agencies take appropriate action. When you look at the recommendations of the Committee, you look at the position they are in. We have PPEs which are in the warehouse which need to be used by the healthcare workers to save lives. The masks need to be given to vulnerable groups. Do we leave them lying there? No, we cannot leave them lying there. The Committee recommends that within 14 days of adoption of this Report, those PPEs must be given out and the masks must be distributed. There are recommendations here that can further be improved by the Public Investments Committee. To me, this is a good start by the Committee that we adopt this and make sure that we release the PPEs. But we ask the investigative agencies to follow the COVID-19 billionaires, freeze their accounts, recover the money they have taken so that there is no loss and make sure that all who conspired to do this, beginning from the PS, the CEO and everyone else hidden behind the companies, are arrested and be brought to justice. It is more than 100 days after the President gave notice and the DCI and the EACC directors have done nothing. The file is brought to the DPP and then taken back. What is it that we are doing? That should not be happening in a country where we have responsibilities unless these people are colluding to continue stealing from the public. 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."
}