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{
    "id": 1488274,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1488274/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 371,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kabondo Kasipul, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Eve Obara",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for giving me an opportunity to also contribute to this debate. I want to reject the amendments. In 2010, we came up with our constitution as the people of Kenya. The intention of establishing the two levels of government was to take services closer to the people. The sectors that affect our people most are water and roads. Those sectors have been devolved to the county government level as others remained at the national level. This is, indeed, the best thing that has happened in this country. Unfortunately, as we move on, we realise that, at the county level, there are serious gaps, particularly in terms of the utilisation of resources to benefit the people. I mean not in all counties, but in some. If you compare the impact of the money that has been given to the county governments over the years with what has been given to the constituencies through the National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF) and the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF), the development that is visible on the ground is that which has been done through those two devolved funds. This is because the NG-CDF and the NGAAF are focused on the areas of greatest needs to the people at the constituency and ward levels. As we seek to raise revenues through taxation based on our projections, we either meet our targets or we do not. When we fail to meet our revenue targets and end up with budgetary shortfalls, the expectation would be that people would be able to adjust their expenditure and work with the available resources. I am surprised that this has not been obvious to many people within the county governments to the extent that the Senate has come up with this amendment, thus demanding an allocation of extra funds that are not available to be shared amongst the counties across the country. Therefore, as I said earlier, these amendments must be rejected. The county governments must be advised to live within their means. They should use the money that has been allocated to them prudently. The county governments have structured themselves as a replica of what is in the national government, and that cannot work. They have very many employees. They have chief officers, ministers, directors and all manner of officers. We do not need some of those officers at that level. In our previous dispensation, as a country, we used to have mayors and 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."
}