Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 1261835,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1261835/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 188,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nominated, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. John Mbadi",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 110,
        "legal_name": "John Mbadi Ng'ong'o",
        "slug": "john-mbadi"
    },
    "content": " Thank you Hon. Speaker. I will do five minutes or less. First of all, I want to agree that we have spoken about this matter for years now that, we need to move away from absolute numbers and anchor our debt to GDP. Why that is necessary is simply because to measure a country’s economic growth, it is measured in terms of GDP in net present value or at times some people measure it in nominal terms. For us to determine our ability to pay or repay our debts, it should be anchored on economic growth. It is from economic growth that will be able to meet our obligations. I now want to disclose that when this Bill was first introduced on 6th or on 8th June 2023 by the Leader of the Majority Party, Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah, I made a public pronouncement that the Bill had been sneaked in the House at a time when we were very busy with the Finance Bill and the Budget Estimates. The reason I said so, and today I am disclosing because from the contribution of the Leader of the Majority Party, it will be fair to take back my words because he has agreed that Clause 6 has a problem. That is the Clause that really offended my conscience. Why? Because from the reading of it, it is clear that we would take away the power of Parliament in settling the debt ceiling or anchoring debt. What really made me a bit unhappy was the proposal that the Cabinet Secretary would just make a report to Parliament, not even seeking post-facto approval. Even as we move to GDP, we need to be clear, as a country, on how to measure the GDP of this country. It is controversial and if we are going to peg our debt to GDP, we need to have harmony and agreement all in the same. I conclude by saying that I agree with the Committee and I am happy that the Committee has recommended that we delete Clause 4 because, when you talk about advice, what is the definition of advice? Hon. Speaker, I was with you in the 10th Parliament where the word “advice” became such a serious matter of debate. What do you mean by advice and agreements? We need to be clear because once you give power to advise, the person given the power may assume that his The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}