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    "id": 157631,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/157631/?format=api",
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    "content": "reforms and where need be, we go ahead with reforms that will ensure a smooth running of the Coalition. The National Accord may not be perfect. When you think about it, I am reminded of the words of Winston Churchill during the formation of the UN. He said that this organization will not deliver us to heaven but it has delivered us from hell. The same can be said of the National Accord. It has shortcomings: It did not deliver us to heaven but definitely, delivered us from hell; the period that we were going through in January 2008. So, it is important that the President, the Prime Minister and everybody that is concerned, we re-look at these issues and where there are conflicts, we try and fix them amicably through dialogue and other methods that do not cause Kenyans anxiety. At the moment, Kenyans are extremely anxious. Wherever you go, Kenyans ask you: “What is happening? Will this Coalition last the five years?” From time to time the two principals go to the platform and tell us, “do not worry, the Coalition will last and nothing is wrong with it”. However, at the same time, you can see they are not moving. We are not working on development issues. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, when Alston came around, he told us that we should sack the Attorney-General and the Commissioner of Police. That is not the issue! Unless we reform the institutions that have given us these problems, it does not matter which individual you put there. Those problems will still exist. Therefore, the reforms are key. For a long long time, Kenyans have been promised constitutional reforms. Now, the way things are going, you hear leaders saying: “Do we really need a new Constitution? Why can we not have minimum reforms and move on?” Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, it will be a great betrayal to Kenyans if we do not deliver a new Constitution. These are the reforms we are talking about. We are also living at a time when the financial crisis in the world is looming. We cannot pretend as a country or Africa, we will definitely be hit. There may be a delay on when, but we shall definitely be hit. We can only ameliorate the effects of the financial crisis if the Government is functioning smoothly and working properly. For me, those are major issues that I thought the President should have addressed. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, there is the question of corruption which again, the President just glossed over, and yet it is fundamental. It is at the core. It is the root cause of many problems that we have in this country. In the past, we have talked about the problems of Anglo Leasing. We have talked about many other problems yet without dealing with those corruption issues, we are getting no where. I am not sure whether my time is up."
}