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"id": 1443353,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1443353/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Mbugua",
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"speaker": {
"id": 899,
"legal_name": "Mary Njoki G Mbugua",
"slug": "mary-njoki-g-mbugua"
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"content": "Mahatma Gandhi once said that the true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members, and these are the children, the elderly and the persons with disabilities. As the National Assembly attempts to amend the Finance Bill, we would be requesting that they do not touch the cash transfers, which help these vulnerable people in our society. On the issue of public debt, the Executive, through the President, has attempted to audit what Kenya owes other countries. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, that issue put Parliament in a very awkward position because to an average Kenyan, what they know is that before any debt is taken, Parliament is involved. There is the perception that Parliament should know which institution or country is lending us money, how much they are lending us, at what interest rate and what is the repayment period. So, when we reach a situation where it appears like we do not know how much we owe, then the Kenyans are asking, what is the role of Parliament? This House through the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) has employed the best minds in the Republic. At the click of a button, you would have expected Parliament to come out and say, according to us as the representatives of the people, this is the amount of money that the Government of Kenya owes and these are the people who have lent us money. It should never be that we are where we are but we do not know how much we owe. This one puts the institution of Parliament in a very awkward position. I also want to address the issue of duplication of duties. When we came up with the devolved system through our Constitution 2010 and created the counties, very many functions were duplicated. When you go to our counties, you will find an agricultural officer paid by the National Government while another one is paid by the county government. You will find a children officer paid by the county government while another one is paid by the National Government. It is high time that the Senate took the lead and audited the 2010 Constitution and ask ourselves, is it really sustainable? What are the weaknesses that we have had over the last 12 years because honestly, things are not working? The young people spoke very clearly, and they said they want action. It is now upon us, the leaders of today, to sit down - and I am happy that is what we are doing - and see what is it that we need to do differently so that we can change the course of this country. As we handle the issue of Gen Z, for those of us who are aspiring to go into senior positions, we must be prepared to face the fact that yes, the Gen Z are there, but after them, the Generation Alphas are coming. These are even more knowledgeable because they were born in the age of information. It is high time we realised that in our public engagements, we must put everything on the table. There is nothing to hide because this country belongs to all of us and more so to our children. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, with those few remarks, I want to support this Motion and thank you for this opportunity."
}