Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 1063373,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1063373/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 365,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Mwaruma",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13223,
        "legal_name": "Johnes Mwashushe Mwaruma",
        "slug": "johnes-mwashushe-mwaruma"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker, for this opportunity to contribute to the Bill. I welcome Sen. Abdul Haji to the Senate. I wish him well as he joins the Senate of Kenya and serves the people of Garissa. Secondly, I would like to congratulate the Committee on Finance and Budget for working expeditiously and burning the midnight oil under the stewardship of Sen. Kibiru, who was indisposed. They have done a very good job to deliver the Bill in time. I would also like to congratulate the Senate of Kenya for working very hard to deliver on their mandate to protect and defend devolution. In so doing, through this Division of Revenue Bill we are taking Kshs70 billion more to the counties. For my county of Taita-Taveta, we are getting shareable increase from Kshs4.2 billion to Kshs4.8 billion, an increment of Kshs600 million. That is money that will go to the development of Taita-Taveta County. Therefore, we would like to congratulate ourselves as Members of the Senate and the Senate of Kenya. Madam Temporary Speaker, allow me to say two things. The threat to devolution and delivering goods and services to our people is the delay in disbursement of money in terms of shareable revenue to our counties. If you go to the counties, our healthcare system is on its deathbed because we do not have drugs and reagents in the hospitals. The nurses are either on strike or go-slow because they do not get all their allowances. If there is no medicine, somebody who is sick in the hospital will not wait for the medicine. Therefore, we would like to urge the Treasury to release money in good time, so that our people can get services because they are dying like flies due to that mistake. Remember that universal healthcare is part of a key area in the Big Four Agenda. Look at the issue of agriculture, which is also devolved and food security is a part of the Big Four Agenda. Right now, in most areas of Kenya, it is raining and most counties subsidize farm inputs. If we do not have money released to the counties, then people will not plant and, therefore, the agenda of food security will not be achieved. Madam Temporary Speaker, talking about the other item of Big Four Agenda, industrialisation, most of our industries are agro-based. How would we achieve---"
}