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{
    "id": 1161287,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1161287/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 126,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Khaniri",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 171,
        "legal_name": "George Munyasa Khaniri",
        "slug": "george-khaniri"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to make my remarks on the amendment Bill that was brought by my good friend, the Senator for Narok. I think he is proposing three major amendments. Just before I comment on those amendments, I want to say that the Election Campaign Financing Bill is a good law because what is happening in Kenya now is that elections have become a preserve of the “who is who” people who have money, people who can finance elections. Therefore, we must come up with a legislation that can provide a level playing ground for all Kenyans. There are so many Kenyans out there who can make extremely good leaders but they do not even dare to vie for an elective seat because they simply cannot finance the elections. Running for elections has become an elites club for the “who is who” and those who have the means to run a campaign. I fully support these amendments by Sen. Olekina, first, because it is not practically possible to audit all candidates participating in elections. He put it very well. I have sat in the County Public Accounts and Investments Committee of this House and I know the overwhelming work that the Auditor-General has in auditing the National Government its Ministries and departments; the county governments and the county assemblies. As we sit right now in this Senate, we are looking at accounts of two to three years ago. We are not even a year behind. We are doing a post-mortem simply because the reports came in late. So, we cannot on top of that, task the Auditor-General to start auditing individuals who are participating in elections. That deletion of that particular article of that legislation should be effected so that they can only audit a candidate or an individual who is suspect; maybe something has been reported or something of that nature. The second amendment that my brother is seeking is to bar political parties and even candidates from receiving donations from external forces so as to participate in local elections. I fully concur with that because if we continue with that then we will be reintroducing neo-colonialism. We do not want to have leaders who will be held hostage by foreign forces simply because they were supported to come to office by those foreign forces. Therefore, we must ensure that this particular amendment goes through so that if you want to seek for support or financing for your election, then do it locally from Kenyans that you seek to lead not from external forces. Therefore, I support that second amendment fully. If I got him right, the third proposal was that only political parties participating in elections should be subjected to submitting their financial records and financial reports to the registrar of political parties. Indeed, we know that the main purpose of forming a political party is ascending to power and seeking power through those political parties. There are those briefcase political parties, people who register parties just for speculations. Maybe even as we effect this amendment that my brother is proposing, that"
}