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{
    "id": 1556393,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1556393/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 51,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Kathuri",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. The question raised by our colleague, the Senator for Turkana County is very important in this era. Just the other day, there were killings in Lokitaung area. One of the reasons maybe that happened is because of poor communication such that bandits came from Ethiopia and invaded a village that had no communication network. It is the responsibility of the Ministry of ICT and Digital Economy and the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) to ensure that our service providers have connected networks across the country. That is why we have this USF. When I was a Member in the National Assembly, as the Chairperson of the Special Funds Committee, I oversighted this Fund. What we established is that a lot of money is just lying idle in this Authority. I remember at that time, the Head of State then, President Uhuru Kenyatta, once made a remark that the money should be given to the police because it was just lying idle. That was in 2020 or 2021. Mr. Speaker, Sir, there is no reason some areas have no communication network. There is an agreement between the service providers such as Safaricom, Airtel and the rest to do coverage within a specific time. The question raised by my friend, Sen. Lomenen, is important. There are many other pockets of areas, some high-potential areas, which are not remote rural areas - areas in Nairobi - which have no network connectivity. For example, there is no connectivity in my house in Meru, where I live. It is very shameful in this era that we have such pockets in this country without connectivity. Mr. Speaker, Sir, my question is this. What does the Universal Service Fund (USF) do and how is it distributed across the country? I know it is in billions. My friend"
}