Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 1274874,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1274874/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 318,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Ali Roba",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "marginalized areas. As such, all the sub-counties are equally affected. Hence, that makes it necessary for a technical committee at the sub-county level, meaning at the constituency level, to be in place. I believe that with the contribution shared by my colleague, Sen. Wakili Sigei, on there being no need for establishment of a technical committee at the sub-county level on the basis of the situation in his county; I think it is a little bit different in the other counties. The other counties are extensively covered, particularly the original Arid and Semi-Arid Land (ASAL) counties. Having listened to most of the contributions, I have noted that there is some information gap. Marginalisation has been equated to poverty and poverty has been equated to marginalisation. However, the reality is that marginalisation does not equal poverty or poverty does not equal marginalisation. Madam Temporary Speaker, marginalisation is a state of underdevelopment arising from deliberate resource denial by successive Governments, starting from the colonial administration in Kenya. That has led to extreme poverty and lack of availability of basic services in selected areas. Unfortunately, when the CRA opened up this discussion on marginalised areas and extended it further as envisaged in Article 204 of the Constitution that established the Equalization Fund, it was gravely diluted. Nevertheless, the situation is as is right now and the second policy has already been passed. We are at the stage of implementation and we are where the CRA is in the process of formulating the third policy. Madam Temporary Speaker, as I reply, I take this opportunity to give credit where it is due. The Equalization Fund started in 2010 and it was supposed to be realised in 2011. However, 10 years have lapsed without any meaningful realisation of the impact and appropriation of it. It is only under this current Government that the Equalization Fund has found traction, that we have passed the Equalziation Fund Appropriation Bill for 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 which has already been assented to by the President as an Act of Parliament. We are now processing the Appropriation Bill for the Equalization Fund 2023/2024, which is at the tail end of its logical conclusion. Meaning the goodwill from the Government led by His Excellency, President William Ruto, cannot be understated. We have also had engagement with the Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury and Economic Planning and that goodwill has been explicitly expressed. For the first time, we have made a request and the Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury and Economic Planning has responded, providing us with a schedule of how he intends to comply with the unreleased arrears of the Equalization Fund amounting to Kshs39 billion, which is a lot of money for these deserving cases. Accordingly, under the first policy and second policy, that shall be appropriated because it covers 14 counties. Madam Temporary Speaker and hon. Senators of this House have made many contributions and there are common denominators that the Committee feels need to put into consideration as well as include in part of the amendments that we intend to move at the time when amendments shall need to be moved at the Committee of the whole stage."
}