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{
    "id": 1250771,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1250771/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 91,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Dr.) Oburu",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 194,
        "legal_name": "Oburu Ngona Odinga",
        "slug": "oburu-odinga"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, thank you for the opportunity. I must admit that I am a Member of the Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations. The report that has been given is on progress. Mr. Speaker, Sir, what was asked for was the progress report. The short time given to the Committee cannot resolve such a fundamental issue. What Members are expecting is a bit too much within a short space of time, which was given to the Committee. This is a progress report. The Committee has scheduled several meetings with all the people that you are talking about. I am sure the Committee will do what is necessary and bring a comprehensive report. This was a just progress report. The issues being discussed are very serious because they are at the core of devolution. As you are aware, this Parliament used to be an appendage of the Office of the President. We did not have the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC). We used to have our budgets budgeted for under the Office of the President. It took a long struggle for Members of Parliament (MPs) and the public to give Parliament a bit of independence and give them their own budget line through the PSC. Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is very serious that not only the MCAs, but the county assemblies receive their budget through the executive. Nonetheless, they are supposed to oversight the executive. How do you oversight when you are depending financially on the allocation? If they want to delay, they can delay you. If they want to muzzle you, they can do so because they are the ones budgeting and giving you the funds. Mr. Speaker, Sir, these are fundamental issues of devolution which must be resolved. However, within the short period of time given, it was not possible to do more than the Committee did. Nonetheless, we are going to do our best."
}