HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept
{
"id": 1492112,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1492112/?format=api",
"text_counter": 246,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Thang’wa",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "students on that cheque. They cannot write on the cheque, so it is a list. When they show the cheque to the people, they will say that it has Kshs400,000 and the list of all these 21 students or has these 40 students and it goes to a certain school. When that check is now taken to school, the list is removed. A new list of about two students is attached. So, in cahoots with either the office of NG-CDF or the issuance of the bursary and the principal of a certain school, that money only pays for two students, then the remainder is divided between the principal and the issuer. This is where corruption for bursaries comes in. To curb corruption in the bursary issuance, I am calling for consolidation so that it can be given to the Ministry of Education as part of the capitation to make education free in secondary schools. There is a lot of bias and favouritism in the issuance of bursaries. If a citizen does not vote for a MP, they will feel that they do not have a right to get a bursary. Sometimes they do not face the MP, MCA or anyone who is issuing a bursary. Sometimes certain politicians will say that because you did not vote for them, they do not want to see you. For us to ensure equity, we have to ensure that no politician is given money to distribute to the people, just as we do not do so with NHIF and pesa ya wazee . Madam Temporary Speaker, yesterday, the Cabinet Secretary for Education said the Ministry of Education has no idea how much is required to educate a child in Kenya from nursery school all the way to university. They have no data; they do not know. Somebody would ask, where did you get the 27 per cent of the capitation of the expenditure in Kenya's education system? Where did you get that 27 per cent? Why not 30, 40 or 90 per cent? This is to say there is a lot of guesswork. We do not know how much a student’s education will cost from nursery to the university. If you read this Motion carefully, you will see that it proposes calculating the cost of education per learner. We have now given them that opportunity. So, we ask, how much do you need for a child? Yesterday, the Cabinet Secretary also said that we have 4.2 million learners in secondary education. Each student or learner will receive a capitation of Kshs22,244. That is the money that the Ministry of Education is supposed to budget for. If we do the math, 4.2 million students multiplied by Kshs22,244, is Kshs93.4 billion for free secondary school education. If the Ministry can afford Kshs93.4 billion, why do we not take all the other money from bursary and scholarship funds and put it into this kitty? We can have more billions and increase the capitation to ensure quality and equal education. To our surprise, yesterday we were told that the Ministry of Education, which is mandated to provide education to all, has a scholarship programme. We cannot ask you to provide education to all, yet you have a kitty that you give to special people. That is already discrimination. They have the Elimu Kenya Scholarship Fund (Elimu Fund) amounting to Kshs4 billion. If we add it to Kshs93.4 billion, it makes it Kshs97.4 billion. If you take Kshs11 billion that the NG-CDF gives and add to this amount, it will make it Kshs108.4 billion. Every county gives about Kshs300 million per year. If you add all the counties, that is almost Kshs14 billion. If you add Kshs93.4 billion, Kshs4 billion, Kshs11 billion and Kshs14 billion, even without counting the Women Representatives’ because I do not have the figures, you have about Kshs122.4 billion. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only.A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and Audio Services,Senate."
}