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{
    "id": 1241155,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1241155/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 229,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cherarkey",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13217,
        "legal_name": "Cherarkey K Samson",
        "slug": "cherarkey-k-samson"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Speaker, for sometime, I have sat in the Public Accounts Committee (CPAC). In fact, the National Treasury even went ahead and invoked Article 225 because of many pending bills. If my memory serves me right, there are almost Kshs120 billion pending bills in counties. The Ministry of Roads and Transportation, a national Government entity, owes close to Kshs1 trillion in pending bills. This issue of pending bills is eating our people. Contractors in our villages and counties are suffering; be it the ones who did the Early Childhood and Development Education (ECDE) classes, polytechnics structures, or anything in terms of service and goods delivery; some have been auctioned. Some are treating ailments such as pressure and diabetics that came because of not being paid. You even saw a video doing rounds on social media, where an old man had removed his clothes in protest because he has not been paid. Madam Temporary Speaker, I am sorry to say this, but devolution has brought misery, pain, anguish and gnashing of teeth by many Kenyan contractors. For example, Nandi County owes its contractors close to Kshs1 billion. All contractors in Nandi County are suffering. Having sat in CPAC, virtually all counties are guilty and I wonder what the Council of Governors (CoG) always discuss. The sad reality is that these are young people who took a Local Supply Order (LSO), or a Local Purchase Order (LPO) to get project financing from a bank and credit societies. They are young people, women and People With Disability (PWD). Can you believe there are people who counties still owe since the onset of devolution in 2013/2014? Madam Temporary Speaker, the National Treasury, at some point, tried to do special audit on pending bills. It also went ahead and threatened counties that if they do not pay the pending bills, they will invoke Article 225 on suspension of funds. It is sad. Madam Temporary Speaker, I was building the background. I, therefore, thank Sen. Omar, one of my Members of the CPAC, a renowned accountant and a well- established finance expert, for coming up with this timely Bill. I encourage Sen. Mariam Omar that this is one of the things that will leave an indelible mark in the legislative process in the history of Parliament of the Republic of Kenya and among the Commonwealth countries."
}