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{
    "id": 1402618,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1402618/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 117,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Abass",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13587,
        "legal_name": "Abass Sheikh Mohamed",
        "slug": "abass-sheikh"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I thank my friend, Sen. Cherarkey, for giving me that kind of title. I think he is in a very good place and I hope to meet that standard. As the Chairperson of the Committee of Devolution, we have gone through all the Acts and laws. We found there is a lot of lacuna in the law, which needs to be changed or improved. As the Mover rightly said, the CECMs are actually people of high calibre. Some of them have come from other ministries, the private sector and some are people who were running their own businesses. However, when they are appointed, they work in an atmosphere of fear and intimidation, such that they cannot deliver their work as required. Whatever qualification they may have, they are at the mercy of the politicians, especially the Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs) and the governor, who is the appointing authority. We felt that the threshold of a third does not give somebody security to work comfortably in the way one should work. Therefore, as you are aware, this equally happens to the deputy governors. They also experience that problem. Today, as I speak before this House, we have 21 cases where the deputy governors are actually being threatened with removal from office. Many speakers and clerks are also under similar threats. If we continue with the same trend, then devolution will not work properly. People will continue being intimidated. This business of trying to impeach people also encourages corruption and that is why we are losing a lot of money in the counties. As a Committee, we felt that we need to change some of these laws, so that at least we can have job security for all the members who are working under the county. For instance, the removal of a governor requires a two-thirds threshold. So, the CECMs as the highest executives next to the governors and the deputy governors, also need to have security for their work. Mr. Speaker, Sir, with those few remarks, this House has to safeguard devolution and the staff have to be safe from interventions, so that at least they can deliver. I beg to second, Mr. Speaker, Sir. 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 and AudioServices, Senate."
}