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{
"id": 1276741,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1276741/?format=api",
"text_counter": 47,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Bumula, DAP-K",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Wanami Wamboka",
"speaker": null,
"content": "we will take a dim view of accounting officers who will fail to submit documentation on time in future. Hon. Speaker, the third issue we encountered was unsecured/untitled land holdings. The Committee observed cases where land held by various institutions was not secured and titled accordingly. This led to encroachment on such land, in some cases with the potential of forfeiture of such land. Most public universities or TVETs do not have title deeds for their land. Most of their lands have been encroached on, and we risk losing them if action is not taken urgently. In this regard, the Committee recommends that the National Land Commission (NLC) and the relevant ministries take action immediately to ensure that all state corporations secure title deeds for all their land parcels. The affected institutions and the National Treasury must prioritize fencing of all the land holdings to forestall further encroachment. Further, the Committee recommends that people who have encroached on public land should face the full force of the law, including evicting them from such land and charging them in courts of law. Some of the people who want to grab these institutions' land are public figures who are well- known. Hon. Speaker, the Committee encountered situations where construction projects in some state corporations had taken inordinately long to complete, leading to escalation of costs through accrued interest. A classic case is a construction project by the KNEC - New Mitihani House - that has been ongoing for 37 years but is still incomplete. The contractors and consultants responsible for the project have squandered money, and to date, the building is incomplete. Another classic example is a construction project at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), which has lasted over 27 years, but the building has not been completed. It is worth noting that the money that has gone to consultancy in some of these projects is more than the money that has gone into actual project works. The Committee, therefore, recommends that the National Treasury only approves projects whose funding it can guarantee to ensure completion within prevailing medium-term economic frameworks. As a Committee, we will seek this House's support to ensure we bring sanity to the National Treasury. As a Government, we must stop introducing projects we cannot fund. In future, we must prioritise funding for all ongoing projects to ensure that they are completed before we embark on new projects. That way, we will realise value for money for our customers, who are the citizenry of this country. Hon. Speaker, regarding expensive consultancies relating to the long-standing construction works discussed above, the Committee observed that some projects had huge components for consultancies, project conception, architectural drawings, and supervision. Since the consultants usually deliver their project designs beforehand, public agencies are forced to pay them upfront for resources that would otherwise be directed toward construction works. This state of affairs has been compounded by a weak public works function that would ordinarily oversee some of these projects. For example, KICD wanted to undertake a project in four phases. Consultants forced the institution to pay the money for four phases, while the only money that the institution had could not even complete the first phase. Eventually, the Government lost money to these so- called \"consultants.\" This House must, therefore, ensure that the law is enforced. We have a Departmental Committee responsible for Public Works. Why have we continued to pay private consultants, who are more expensive, yet we have employed engineers, architects, and quantity surveyors who can help us with this function? The Committee, therefore, recommends that the Ministry responsible for Public Works revamps the Public Works Department and employs adequate and competent staff. Moreover, certain technical institutions, including the Kenya Technical Training College (KTTC), 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."
}