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{
    "id": 1490841,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1490841/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 156,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Sifuna",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13599,
        "legal_name": "Sifuna Edwin Watenya",
        "slug": "sifuna-edwin-watenya"
    },
    "content": "As we speak, the existing sewage network, for instance, covers only 30 per cent of the total square area of Nairobi City County. As you know, the past few years have seen a lot of rapid development in terms of housing. Very many new buildings are coming up, going up to 25 floors, and hosting thousands of tenants. However, it has not been accompanied by the commensurate infrastructure upgrade that is required. This is why much of our water and sanitation infrastructure is creaking. So, I continue to call on the national Government to honor its responsibilities under the Urban Areas and Cities Act to support Nairobi's development of certain critical infrastructure, including our water infrastructure, so that we can meet the needs of the people of Nairobi. Secondly, the Committee has highlighted the spectre of illegal connections and what the chair has called outright corruption. There are stories we hear in this city; very serious allegations are made against the management of the NWSC and the people who work there. Even though they told us that there is a programme of equitable distribution of water across the city, there are unscrupulous people within the company who are merchants of water. They own water bowsers and are aware of the distribution schedule. The running joke is that some of them have construction going on and they tell their contractors that wacha nifunge maji Nairobi West and then I will come and see you at the hardware. They do this knowing that they are shutting water supply to Nairobi West, then their water bowsers are available for the people of Nairobi West to buy water from. Mr, Temporary Speaker, Sir, unfortunately for us, we rely on other institutions. We have complained even at the County Public Accounts Committee that unfortunately as a House, our role ends somewhere. Once we bring up these matters before these Committees, we depend on other institutions of Government, including the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to follow up and to be able to bring some of these matters before the courts so that we can stop these malpractices. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I remember and I do not know if the Chairperson of this Committee can recall, that when the Nairobi Water team was before his Committee, there was a discussion about the discharge point for sewage from these exhausters in Nairobi. The management could not tell on average in a day what the identities of the trucks that have delivered or have discharged that morning are. They could not tell you the number of times a vehicle of specific registration number has appeared. It becomes very difficult for you to manage revenue if you are operating like that. If we do not focus on illegal connections and corruption within our water companies, we are doing nothing. By the way, I used to think that cartels in the water sector, for instance, are shadowy figures whom you cannot point out. The people doing illegal connections are known within our communities. It is the inefficiency of the water companies that supports the existence of these cartels. The people, especially in the informal settlements, have come to realize that the suppliers who have made illegal connections somehow provide a more reliable service than the water company itself. If these issues are not addressed, then we will not be doing anything. 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."
}