Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 1563258,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1563258/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 398,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Cheruiyot",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Majority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13165,
        "legal_name": "Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot",
        "slug": "aaron-cheruiyot"
    },
    "content": "their service provision is consuming close to 50 per cent of the funds we are devolving, is that really the original intention of devolution. I do not think that is the case. Therefore, as a House, we must make difficult decisions. We should guide the counties, hold their hands and help them to make the right decision so that there is prudent use of resources. The Public Finance Management Act is not a suggestion. It is a set of rules that we are actually duty-bound, as a House, to ensure that we enforce its compliance. We have to ensure that the county governments follow through with the intended purpose of the regulations that we have passed here on many occasions. We are increasingly getting to hear that committees have visited various places, which is a good thing, but I wish that we address ourselves to more concrete and substantial issues. If we do that, we will help the country appreciate and know that the Senate has taken its place and that we take our duty of oversight very seriously. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I said what I am about to say again towards the end of last session. I said that it is possible for us, as a House, to develop the tools through which we can measure the performance of a county government. The Senate can then give a fair and objective appraisal of all the 47 county governments based on the indices that we will develop. This is not rocket science. They are things that are available. We can look at how a county treats pending bills, what percentage of their resources are dedicated to development and their own source revenue. We can also look at corruption indexes, the cases that are being reported, completion of projects, budget implementation and absorption of the budget. These are things that we know and are available in all the 47 county governments. Sen. Mungatana, MGH, do you want to tell me that as a House, we cannot do this? We can have the Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations or the Committee on Budget and Finance lead us. If they find it to be difficult, then those of us who take our legislative duties seriously, like yourself, Sen. Cherarkey, the Temporary Speaker and many of us can develop the tools. Why do we have to wait for some dubious institutions to rank governors and troop them here to Nairobi and say that governor so and so has performed yet we know how they secure those things? That is stupidity of the highest order. A governor who goes to pose for pictures with those things is a con man that the people of that county should quickly reject. What basis do they use to indicate their performance? We know the tools that we can use to measure the performance of a county government. This is a responsibility which we, as Senate, cannot pass on to any other person. These are things that we need to do and ensure that we set the indices together with the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO). We should develop the framework and the formula, such that when it is applied and weighted, one can see the performance of a county government. We can then objectively assess and say that this is what we know about it and the things that are happening."
}