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{
    "id": 1202216,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1202216/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 107,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kikuyu, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "here in the 13th Assembly as representatives of the people of Kenya. I want to ask each and every one of us to support the legislative agenda that will comes here. If you have listened and have been watching the actions of the President over the last few days, you can tell that he is very passionate about the housing agenda. He is extremely passionate about the Universal Health Coverage agenda and the Social Protection and upscaling the savings culture in this country. He spoke very much about that. He also spoke to the decriminalization of enterprise and supporting the enterprising young Kenyans and the business community through the Hustlers’ Fund. I am glad that the President was also very bold. I remember he was quite dramatic in his Speech when he said: “I have news and it is not very good news. Our financial situation is not very good.” It is true that this administration has inherited a country whose economy is not working for the interest of Kenyans. The President’s administration has inherited an economy that was only working for a few people. This administration has huge responsibility to make, not just the Hustler Economy, but the economy of the Kenyan people; the millions of the Kenyan people rather than for a few. Hon. Speaker, during the campaign period, those of us who campaigned with the Kenya Kwanza Coalition spoke at length about State capture. State capture in this country has been so real and that is what has bedevilled the management of our economy and its affairs. It is State capture that captured our economy, and it stopped working for Kenyans and started working for a few people who wielded their instruments of power. It is my prayer and I am confident that part of the legislative agenda that will be transacted on this Floor will be to reverse that State capture of our economy and make it work for the millions of Kenyans who voted for each one of us and those who voted for and against the President. We must act in a manner that will help our people. If not to do anything else, Members, but to uplift our people from the poverty that millions of our people are living in today Today, people in close to 15 of our counties are going without food. There is a drought that is ravaging our country and we cannot feed our people if we do not review our budgetary estimates for this year. I know the President mentioned a figure of Kshs300 billion and it sounded humongous that we could institute budget cuts of up to Kshs300 billion. But I want to persuade and convince you that it is possible. You know the padding that is usually done in budgets especially in the run up to general elections. You will be shocked that a week before elections and a week after elections, the former regime was still padding the budget and making commitments. By the third week after elections, they had made commitments of close to Kshs300 billion over and above what had been approved by this House at the beginning of June this year. You wonder what had to be done outside the Budget, under Article 223, by those who served us in the National Treasury, that could not be done during the annual Estimates in April, which is only four months ago. Hon. Speaker, if you go through many of the things that they had committed to are things that emanate from State capture. Therefore, as His Excellency the President calls on us in this House to help him because we are the budget making House, to rationalize our Budget for this financial year to make it work for Kenyans, we are not going to rationalize it to make it work for a section of Kenyans. We will rationalize the budget to make it work for the majority and millions of Kenyans across the board. That is why the President said he wants an economy that will work and a Government and administration that will serve Kenyans in all constituencies, wards and counties in the Republic of Kenya. We have no obligation other than to support His Excellency the President. I have heard Members question the President’s Speech on the issue of corruption. Hon. Fatuma from Migori said she was disappointed because he did not talk about corruption. President William Ruto does not need to speak about corruption. He needs to act on corruption. He has started acting. He has ensured that we are resourcing the Office of the Inspector General (IG). He has given financial independence to our criminal justice system to make sure that we The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for informationpurposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}