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{
    "id": 1546093,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1546093/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 196,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Osotsi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13588,
        "legal_name": "Osotsi Godfrey Otieno",
        "slug": "osotsi-godfrey-otieno"
    },
    "content": "a) Busia, Kwale, Lamu, Malindi, Tavevo and Wote Water and Sewerage Companies Limited; and b) Eldoret, Gatanga, Gusii, Kakamega, Kapsabet-Nandi, Kibwezi Makindu, Mbooni, Murang’á South, Murang’a, and Tana Water and Sewerage Services Companies Limited, laid on the Table of the Senate on Thursday, 27th March, 2025 and approves the recommendations of the Committee on the Financial Statements for the respective water service providers for the Financial Year 2023/2024. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, you are aware that we began the process of examining the audited report for various water companies in the last session. We made serious and positive strides in aligning the various water service providers to the law. We had second chance to look at the reports for the Financial Year 2023/2024. Although there is some improvement, the challenges that were there originally are still there. We found out the following challenges as contained in the audit report- (i) material uncertainty relating to ongoing concern, which basically meant insolvency of the water companies; (ii) high non-revenue water, where the standard industrial benchmark is 25 per cent, yet most of these water companies are beyond 25 per cent. This basically means that the water they produce is wasted and not billed or accounted for; (iii) unaccounted or unauthorized use of customer deposits; (iv) non-compliance to physical responsibility especially on matters of excess wage bill; (v) outstanding trade receivables, that is, the people who owe these water companies money is still a challenge; (vi) accuracy of the financial statements and errors in the financial statements; (vii) non-remittance of statutory deduction; and (viii) issues of budget control and performance. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, all these issues are contained in the Report that I have tabled and I hope Members will have an opportunity to look through and know the status of water companies in their counties. I wish to request that the Report that we have tabled before this House that has numerous resolutions be adopted by this House. Particularly, there is the resolution to grant the Committee more time to undertake detailed enquiries on the outstanding fiduciary risk queries that have been raised by the Auditor-General in her report. We have further resolved that; we would be arranging meetings in this county to physically inspect some of the issues that were raised in the report. With those remarks, I would like to request Sen. Tobiko to second."
}