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{
"id": 1242226,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1242226/?format=api",
"text_counter": 916,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Olekina",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": {
"id": 407,
"legal_name": "Ledama Olekina",
"slug": "ledama-olekina"
},
"content": "Tell me now, if you put headquarters in Nairobi, how will a farmer in Narok, Makueni, Lamu or Tana River counties benefit? Put the headquarters in the cotton growing regions. Who says that cotton cannot be grown in Narok? If cotton can be grown in Homa Bay and parts of Siaya, I dare say that parts of Narok County can grow cotton. If you analyze the soils, cotton can also be grown there. Let us promote our counties. Let us make legislation that supports counties, especially on what is devolved. Others might come up with an argument that not every part of Kenya grows cotton. Make those parts grow cotton. I come from a school of thought where if you give me stone, I can boil it and drink the soup. At least, I will have to make something out of it. We are in a time where we can use science. Why is it that when we travel to other countries, we are happy to come and say that we were in Italy or Brazil and praise how they do agriculture and promote their industries? We are happy to clap for them, but when we come back here, we just sit and place everything in Nairobi. We give more powers to the President and the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development. Why then do we not say, “to hell with this issue of devolution and go back to the colonial period of a central Government?” Those are the things that I do not support. I hope my sister will change them. Remove the issue of having headquarters of the Board in Nairobi. That is why we need talk to our brothers and sisters in the National Assembly. Even if they oversight the national Government, they come from our counties. They are fighting for the National Government-Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF), which is something I do not believe in because we have counties. The reason our counties are not doing well is that instead of supporting devolution, we are busy taking money from it. We need to have a conversation with our brothers and sisters in the National Assembly. When it comes to the budget appropriations, we need to make sure we send money to counties. If it is the Coastal region, we have five counties which include, Kwale, Kilifi, Lamu, Taita-Taveta and Tana River. In Central region, we have Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Murang’a and Nyeri. In Rift Valley, we have Baringo, Elgeyo-Marakwet, Kajiado, Kericho, Turkana and West Pokot, among others. When it comes to the budget on agriculture, we should sit down and talk with the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development. If the Members of Parliament in the Committee on Budget and Appropriations of the National Assembly are the ones who are really making the budget, ensure that your regions have got money to grow the cotton industry. It is a shame that we are now producing 25,000 bales in this country while the demand is over 200,000 bales. Madam Temporary Speaker, we used to pride ourselves as being one of the richest countries in East and Central Africa. We must practice what we preach. The moment we realise that our counties are important, is the day we will continue to develop."
}