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{
    "id": 1063273,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1063273/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 265,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Khaniri",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 171,
        "legal_name": "George Munyasa Khaniri",
        "slug": "george-khaniri"
    },
    "content": "Madam Deputy Speaker, I want to thank you for the opportunity to make my comments on this Bill. At the very outset, allow me to hail our Standing Committee on Finance and Budget for the expeditious way in which they handled this Bill. Madam Deputy Speaker, you will remember that this Bill was only read for the first time in this House on 30th March, which is barely two weeks ago. The team, has in that short period managed to dispense of the Bill. They have met all the stakeholders including the Attorney-General, the National Treasury, the Council of Governors (CoG), the County Assembly Forum and other non-State actors in that short period. We must hail them for the good job that they have done and support the very important amendments that they have introduced, which will be coming in the Committee Stage. Madam Deputy Speaker, the Division of Revenue Bill is one of the most important roles of this House. In fact, it is one of our cardinal responsibilities as a House. When we go to our various counties and tell wananchi and everybody that we are the ones who bring money, this is it. It is at this stage that we play a major role in ensuring that counties get sufficient monies and resources to run their government. It should not be lost to us that the gains we are getting are after the fight that we put in last year, particularly those of us who were in Team Kenya. I want at this stage, to thank the Members of Team Kenya and particularly those who were from the counties that were gaining initially but decided to stand with the rest of Kenyans and the rest of the counties that were losing by telling the Government that it is possible to have a win- win situation. I want to thank Sen. Murkomen, Sen. Malalah, Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr., Sen. (Dr.) Langat, Sen. Cheruiyot, the late Sen. (Dr.) Kabaka - may his soul rest in peace, the former Senator for Machakos - and all those who were gaining but then decided to stand with us who were losing. Madam Deputy Speaker, it is because of the effort and the war that we fought at that stage that we managed to push this shareable revenue from Kshs319 billion to Kshs370 billion, gaining a whooping Kshs50 billion. It is because of that that I managed to fight for Vihiga to gain Kshs414 million. From Kshs4.6 billion, they were losing to Kshs4.4 billion, but now Vihiga is going to get Kshs5 billion. That is an additional Kshs600 million. I want to hail that team for the stand that they took and the perseverance that they put in. However, as we pass this Bill, let me echo the words of Sen. Orengo that it is absolutely important that Treasury ensures timely disbursement of funds to our counties. This is expressly provided for in our Constitution, in particular Article 219 of our Constitution. Year-in-year-out the Treasury and the National Government have flouted this Article of the Constitution. It is our role as the Senate to stand firm and ensure that the national Government and the Treasury for that matter, adheres to that Article of the Constitution that is Article 219 which states that money should expressly be disbursed to the counties when it is due."
}