Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 1111622,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1111622/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 339,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Omogeni",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13219,
        "legal_name": "Erick Okong'o Mogeni",
        "slug": "erick-okongo-mogeni"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, if they were able to agree, that is very good. We have the one between Garissa and Isiolo. Many of these have remained unresolved. In fact, instead of leaving these to our courts and judicial systems, let us take advantage of the provisions of Article 159. What Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr. is doing is actually invoking the provisions of Article 159 and promoting alternative forms of dispute resolution. This Bill is very progressive. It is a good one. I wish that we had enacted it into law earlier, but it is never too late. Members should lobby and reach out to our brothers in the National Assembly so that we process it. We do not mind amendments being proposed, but let it not stall. Madam Temporary Speaker, I know that there have been issues that have been raised on the viability of some counties. I think the smallest should be Lamu. These are problems that are all over the world where you have a devolved system of government. If I remember correctly, if you go to the United States of America (USA), Rhode Island is a State with two Senators in the Senate. It has only two congressmen in the House of Representatives. It is the smallest. A bigger State like California, where the Speaker Nancy Pelosi comes from, has 53. We are able to accommodate our brothers. I think that we need to retain our counties the way they were conceived. Some are big and some are small. In the USA, as Sen. Murkomen correctly put it, it is only boundaries of congressional districts that keep changing depending on the population demographics. However, the boundaries of states have remained the same for over 200 years. Madam Temporary Speaker, I think that we should also retain the same spirit in Kenya. When we revisit the issue of boundaries for our constituencies, it is good to have this system that prevails in the USA. Every ten years, boundaries keep shifting. The number of seats allocated to states keeps shifting depending on the population of a particular state. Many years back, the largest used to be New York, but it has now been overtaken by California. New York has only 27 Congressmen in the House of Representatives and California has about 53. This should be a challenge to our governors. If you put in place an attractive economic environment, you are able to attract more investors and people to settle in your state. The counties can then grow. I am looking forward to a time when we will all be looking north. There is a lot of land in northern Kenya in Isiolo, Mandera, and Marsabit. Why should we be staying in Kisii where the largest piece of land I can ever dream of owning is maybe half-an-acre? I can move to the North Eastern Region and own a big piece of land, maybe ten acres."
}