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{
    "id": 1376457,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1376457/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 342,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Prof) Kamar",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 33,
        "legal_name": "Margaret Jepkoech Kamar",
        "slug": "margaret-kamar"
    },
    "content": "We lag behind Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania. It is a sad situation and we need to ask ourselves how we can deal with this issue. I would have accepted that an amendment be brought to this report so that the issue of gender is rectified. We need to rectify that and we do not need to do more research. Multisectoral discussion is not the issue. The thing is we have all the facts and we had them during the promulgation of the new Constitution. It is just a matter of operationalising the clauses of gender and making sure that it is done. Madam Temporary Speaker, although we are saying that all elective, nominative and appointive positions should have gender-balance, the appointive ones have not been addressed. This is because of the same attitude towards gender. Therefore, it needs to be dealt with. The other issue is to congratulate the committee for coming up with the establishment of these two offices. Some people think it is negative to have those offices, but it is positive to have the Office of the Leader of the Official Opposition and the office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary. During the Bomas process when the Constitution was being drafted, of which I was a Member, it was clear that Kenyans wanted five positions at the top leadership of this country. They wanted a President, a Deputy President, a Prime Minister and two Deputy Prime Ministers. What were Kenyans looking for at that time? They were looking for inclusivity because the negativity and tribalism that we have had has had to do with people not being included. Inclusivity is a very important thing. Even the inclusion of the Leader of the Opposition is very important because that person is not an enemy of the country. Being a leader of the opposition means that you are the one championing the checks and balances of the Government. It is simply that. We should not run away from that fact. To me, those two positions are good. Finally, Madam Temporary Speaker, the three recommendations on entrenching funds in the Constitution are good. Entrenching the Senate Oversight Fund (SOF) makes it attractive. However, in this House, you should ask yourself why is it that we are talking about 47 and not 67 Senators. We must interrogate and ask ourselves. When we were earlier discussing this Fund, I chose not to talk about it because I wanted it to pass. I wanted money to come in first, so that there is no excuse that they fought over it and did not pass it. Now that we have the money, we need to ask ourselves if we are going to have nominated Members not getting involved in oversight. That will be a lie to Kenyans. The reason we have nominations is to have the areas uncovered covered. Gender is one of the areas as well as the disabled and the youth. We cannot ignore that constituency when it comes to oversight because there are issues that need to be addressed. Madam Temporary Speaker, oversight is not just interrogating the expenditure of the governor. Oversight means looking at the budgeting by the governor and the County Integrated Development Plan (CIDP) to see whether they cover every sector. There are sectors that have not been looked into. It would have been useful that as we entrench the SOF, we resolve the issue of having everyone, 67 Members in this Senate included."
}