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{
    "id": 1236532,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1236532/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 201,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. M. Kajwang’",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13162,
        "legal_name": "Moses Otieno Kajwang'",
        "slug": "moses-otieno-kajwang"
    },
    "content": "No, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I am usually very precise. I do not make those kinds of errors. I was the Chairperson of the Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations after Sen. Kinyua, Senator for Laikipia. I inherited a job well done and when I handed over to Sen. Abbas, I can see they are doing even a greater job than Sen. Kinyua, Sen. Murkomen and I did, as founding chairpersons of that Committee. Many of the laws that have come to this House have been laws on self- preservation. The very first referendum call that came from the Senate was on how to strengthen the Senate. It was about self-preservation. When we get legislative proposals from the Council of Governors (CoG), many times it is about self-preservation. How to strengthen the CoG and how to entrench the Secretariat in law. When we get proposals from county assemblies, like in the legislative conference that will soon be having, they will be self-serving. They will be about how loans and car grants and how to enhance the salaries of Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs). I am so happy that Sen. Abbas and the team in the Committee on Devolution and Inter- Governmental Relations has cast aside those self-serving approach to laws and now we are looking at the substantive issues that the Senate exists to address. Mr. Speaker, Sir, nothing is more urgent than a legislative impact assessment. We have had 13 years of devolution, what has been the impact of the laws that we have in place? If we are going to have a referendum in this country, I know there are other things out there in the political space where people are passionate, but a referendum in this country must have at its core how to strengthen devolution and how to expand the breadth of services and functions that are taken to county governments. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Roads Bill collapsed in our hands in the last Parliament. As a result, the national Government is building roads in villages, a job that is clearly for governors. That money is sitting in Nairobi. Even in last week's debate on the Division of Revenue, even if we argued that counties should get more money and we still have Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KERRA) and Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) existing in Nairobi, it defeats the whole purpose of devolution. Another very urgent piece of legislation is a legislation that established the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA). I am glad that the fisherfolk decided to set up a"
}