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{
    "id": 1270336,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1270336/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 424,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cherarkey",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13217,
        "legal_name": "Cherarkey K Samson",
        "slug": "cherarkey-k-samson"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Speaker, I hope Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale is getting the notes bullet by bullet. The only problem I have here is the involvement of counties which are bastions of corruption. Today, I saw Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale attending a programme on the state of the Nation. We are also going to hold the Devolution Conference in Uasin Gishu. The biggest clogging system, threat and cancer of the functionality of devolved units in this country, is corruption. Madam Temporary Speaker, yesterday, there was a complaint that it looks like we have gone back to the default settings of 2013 where money was just being released to counties and there were no accountability measures. As the Vice Chairperson of the County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC), if you look at the heart, body, blood and system of counties, it is infected by corruption and lethargy. Corruption continues to eat our counties. I do not find any wisdom where a governor runs around to look for scholarships for children outside the country while the roads in the village are not passable or water cannot be accessed. Where do they get this energy of running to look for scholarships and not fixing feeder roads, water, or drugs in hospitals? Nowadays, I see them busy lobbying for national Government projects. That is not their business. When we budget in Parliament, it should guide them. Governors have now left their jobs of fixing feeder roads, water, Early Childhood Education Development (ECDE) and drugs in hospitals. They are now busy doing other things; coming to the Council of Governors (CoGs) and perpetuating many issues that do not tally with the Fourth Schedule. Madam Temporary Speaker, I want to ask that during the Devolution Conference, Sen. Omogeni Senior Council (SC) be given an opportunity to school governors about their role as per the Fourth Schedule because we are going back. Someone would ask why we are coming up with Sen. Ali Roba’s Equalization Fund (Administration) Bill and the Conditional Grants Bill. We are ring-fencing the law because governors cannot use the money well. We have to guide them and tell them where to put money. Devolution should work. I hope people like Sen. Ali Roba will be given an opportunity to speak to governors on how devolution can change the lives of people, the way it has changed in Mandera County. I know Kakamega is in a sorry state. I do not want to say much of that because I am their neighbour. Madam Temporary Speaker, that is one of the biggest challenges that we are still undergoing. I say this with tremendous respect. I ask the Committee of Finance and Budget to give us the opportunity to amend this Bill when it reaches the Committee of the Whole Stage. Let the Senate not remove itself from the role that it should be participating. Before we know it, this Senate will have to be closed. This is because slowly by slowly, we are relieving ourselves from the role that we should be doing. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard Services,Senate."
}