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"speaker_name": "Navakholo, JP",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Emmanuel Wangwe",
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"content": " Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Whereas my colleagues could not say whether they want to support or not, I want to be on the frontline to say I rise to support this Report by the Departmental Committee on Budget and Appropriations, especially tackling the issue of the 2021/2022 Budget. This Budget is coming at a time when there is COVID-19. COVID-19 is a pandemic that we do not know its origin. We hear of its origin but cannot ascertain it. It came to us, it is here with us, and we do not know for how long. Therefore, it is something that we need to work with. It is something that we must accept and move forward. This Budget is a Ksh3.6 trillion one. It is a heavy Budget to the Kenyan people. It is a budget which we all must appreciate and say we either work with it or force it to know how we propel our Kenyan people through this turbulence. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, this Budget is addressing very many good issues. On issues to do with agriculture, whereas many of my colleagues are talking of agriculture not having been considered, and various treaties that Kenya has entered into without really defining the 10 per cent that has been mentioned on the Floor, but 10 per cent of it covers agriculture, farming and forestry. Therefore, when you combine it and look at what has gone into the forestry budget together with agriculture, the 10 per cent aforesaid is even more than we covered in the Budget. However, the issue of incentives to our farmers is very key. It is something which is lacking in this Budget which we need to look into. It is us, the lawmakers, who define this Budget and who interrogate it. We cannot now tell Kenyan people that we are unable yet after voting for this Report, we will be going for the Committee of Supply. All Members of this House shall contribute to the Committee of Supply and whatever issues that they have can now finalize this Budget through the Committee of Supply. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Article 221 of the Constitution simply gives the national Government the power and authority to originate the framework. To align the framework of the Budget to the needs of the people, it is us the representatives of the people who undertake that. Therefore, as Members of this House, we will not give away our power. Instead, I want to urge my colleagues to come out very strongly and express their opinions and ideas that they have during the Committee of Supply. I just did not want to take too much time on the issue of expenditure. I just want to look at the issue that whereas we are making the Budget, there is the left hand to spend and the right hand to generate. We expect, tomorrow, in the Budget highlights, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and National Treasury to tell us how he intends to fund this Budget. The times are bad and the situation is bad. I urge the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and National Treasury not to increase the taxes as he goes into the funding of this Budget. Instead, let him expand the tax base so that the leakage that is going on… Let the money that is not being collected be collected. Let us not increase the taxes to burden the Kenyan people. If he does that, then we will all say that it is a good thing so that we are able to fund the Budget that we have in this House today. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, my good friend talks of the National Government Constituencies Development Fund. When you look at this Budget, there is something that we need 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."
}