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{
"id": 1233111,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1233111/?format=api",
"text_counter": 293,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. Kipchumba Murkomen",
"speaker_title": "The Cabinet Secretary for Roads, Transport and Public Works",
"speaker": {
"id": 440,
"legal_name": "Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen",
"slug": "kipchumba-murkomen"
},
"content": " Hon. Speaker, if you allow me, I will start with the question asked by Hon. Cynthia Muge about what we are doing concerning the roads. This will help in answering all the questions that have been asked. As I had already said, I think I should table the list officially in the House. Once I do that, in the subsequent conversations in the near future, Members will have a reference point of all the contracts in the entire 800 projects. From there, if Hon. Members want to consult with the agency or the Ministry, we are available. Two, I have established a procedure of consultation with all leaders. So far, we have had a meeting with eleven counties, the latest being Turkana County this morning. As a result of those meetings with Tharaka Nithi, Kisii, Baringo, Turkana, among others, it has become easier for Members to make certain suggestions during the meeting and it has been more helpful where you have a meeting with the county governor present. This is because then we deal with the issue of duplication of roads and allocation of resources. Again, Hon. Speaker, as I have said, my office is open. We have had meetings with 11 counties. I will intensify the consultations. I think Kajiado is the next county and we will make sure that we do all the remaining 36 counties in the next three months. Our meetings start at 7.30 a.m. and by 9.00 p.m. we are done so that Hon. Members and the deputy governors are able to go back to their offices. All these questions and clarifications, once they are asked, not only do they help us in doing our job, but also help Members of Parliament to do their oversight work. Having said that, Hon. Speaker, now I go to the specific questions asked, for example the Navakholo Road asked by the Member for Kanduyi. That road remained stalled from 2017/2018. I remember a little bit because some of the Members had come to my office. It stalled not because of money. At that time, we had resources. It was as a result of the contractor. We have decided to terminate the contract but by mutual consent with the contractor, and we are in the process of getting another contractor who is more effective. The process is ongoing and soon we are putting in place measures to ensure that we have resources and that the contract continues. It will be prioritised considering the length of period that it has taken to be done. I will answer Hon. Farah’s question together with Hon. Saney’s on the state of roads in North Eastern as a whole. Indeed, we are unable to do new roads but if you remember in my answer, I put a rider that, ‘unless the roads are supported by development partners’. The good news in the northern part of the country is that under this project of Horn of Africa funded by the World Bank and African Development Bank, we will be able to do major projects. In fact, some of the major projects that are going to happen in the next three or four years are all in the North and they are all new projects. This is going to change the situation in the northern part of the country. We are not only going to doing the main tarmac roads, but we are also going to ensure that all those roads provide spur roads to access all the centres and schools. That should facilitate access to urban areas. Two, all those roads have Information and Communication Technologies (ICT"
}