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{
"id": 1584770,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1584770/?format=api",
"text_counter": 270,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "South Mugirango, UDA",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Silvanus Osoro",
"speaker": null,
"content": "money is spent in the counties. It is unfortunate. We must remind them that devolution has been here for over 10 years, and we have not reached the level envisioned by the drafters of the Constitution. Members of Parliament are still being approached to work on issues that are supposed to be handled by the county governments. Civic education should done to the members of the public to know the function of Members of Parliament under Articles 95 and 96 of the Constitution, and what the governors are supposed to do. Whenever we visit our constituencies, we are approached by people asking about water, hospitals, feeder roads and everything. When we tell them that this is supposed to be done by the governors, they tell us that they elected us, and they do not know these governors and the Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs). They want us to implement the suggested projects. This is challenging. There has been a gradual growth in the revenue allocated to the counties. From Ksh370 billion, and now we are at Ksh415 billion. The question is, where does this money go to? We know it gets to the counties, but what does it do? They only move around and across the counties. The roles of the county governments include building Early Childhood Development and Education (ECDE) classrooms, and constructing feeder roads, but this is still a challenge. Yesterday, I was engaging one Senator who was in the Mediation team, and he confided in me that even after pushing for the allocation, they know that out of the 47 governors, only three of them are working. When I asked him why they were pushing for Ksh430 billion, he said they were just enriching them. It is quite sad. What this money is used for nowadays will surprise you. It is only meant to create a group of people who are paid monthly and move around with the governors to public functions as cheering squads. You will notice that even the standing position is the same. They go around with the governor everywhere, be it in churches or at funerals. Their job description is to cheer whenever the governors stand to speak so that everyone thinks they are popular. This is a sad reality. Counties are not doing what they are supposed to be doing. The drafters of the Constitution envisioned that the money would get closer to people, and the responsibilities would be limited to that area; so would development. This is not happening. The roads are in a pathetic condition. The other day when they were engaging us over the RMLF, where yours truly sent us, we took four hours debating about Ksh10 billion, and we could not agree. In fact, they got to a point and said that if we did not agree, they would shut down the counties. However, we told them that we would not feel the impact, since even when they are in operation, we do not feel them. Therefore, their shutting down would be inconsequential. We are promoting the culture of goons by allocating significant funds to hire them from one corner of the country to another. I have always stated, and I shall repeat, that as you move around the country, you will see the work of the NGAAF and the NG-CDF. You will see, in the public eyes, water tanks being distributed by the gracious ladies from this House. You will also witness them providing bursaries, albeit with a meagre amount of approximately Ksh40 million. Hon. Speaker, for the billions allocated to county governments, one would need a microscope to identify any tangible achievements. All you see is a group of individuals travelling with a convoy of 30 to 40 vehicles to a single function—one carrying a podium, another carrying a chair, another a carpet, another a toilet, and yet another who knows what else. Their aim is merely to hear a queue of people calling out, \"Oh, Your Excellency.\" How can we refer to individuals who do not work as \"Your Excellency\"? Stop calling them that! We need to empower the county assemblies. It is time we rethought how to empower these assemblies so that they have a replica system to ours, enabling them to enjoy greater autonomy and perhaps more development funds. We are enriching individuals who are creating a demigod status for themselves. People who, if they disagree with you, will mess your life to The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}