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{
"id": 184220,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/184220/?format=api",
"text_counter": 206,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Wetangula",
"speaker_title": "The Minister for Foreign Affairs",
"speaker": {
"id": 210,
"legal_name": "Moses Masika Wetangula",
"slug": "moses-wetangula"
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"content": " Thank you very much, Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me an opportunity to support this very important Vote. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, local authorities in this country ought to play a very critical role in our development. Indeed, it is for that reason that we have funds under the LATF going to those authorities. But when you look at the performance of all the local authorities, starting with the premier local authorities like the city councils of Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu-- - In all of them, there is some bit of disconnect between what they are supposed to do and what they actually do. I hope that the new Minister, with new dynamism, will cause those local authorities to do the work they are supposed to do. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, Nairobi is the hub of Kenya's economy. About 60 per cent of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) comes from Nairobi. One would expect that the amount of money that we pass in this Parliament to pass on to the City Council of Nairobi and the money they collect from the public from services, should give the residents of this City proper services. Gone are the days when the City Council of Nairobi used to develop prestigious housing enterprises like Madaraka Estate, that was a premier residential area for middle class people in this country. There was Kariokor Estate and others. I do not think that the City Council of Nairobi has, for the last 20 or 30 years, developed any residential houses for the people who live in this town. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, you look at the roads--- Of course, we passed a law here to create the Kenya Urban Roads Authority, that is supposed to take over the management of urban roads. But, even before that, the roads in this City, whether you go to Industrial Area, where the bulk of the wealth of this country is created and generated, or to rich suburbs where people live, including on. Members of Parliament--- If you go to Runda, Karen and everywhere, there are hardly any roads that are commensurate with the status of a city! Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I think this Parliament should work hand in hand with local authorities to see that the taxpayers' money, whether directly paid to the authorities or allocated from the Exchequer through this Parliament, is put to good use. The same story is replicated everywhere! If you go to Mombasa, it is the same story. There are kiosks everywhere! You land at the Moi International Airport and as you drive out, there is an eyesore of kiosks! If you go to Kisumu, you feel appalled to see raw sewage being released into Lake Victoria! If you go to Nakuru, you see the dirt and the storm water that rolls into Lake Nakuru! Everywhere, it is a sad story in dire need of change! I do hope that the Minister and all of us who are concerned do not reduce our engagement with local authorities at the level of talking as to whether we are going to pay them from the Consolidated Fund or not; to discuss as to whether they should earn over Kshs100,000 or not--- We should look at the services. I do believe that if the local authorities gave services, they would, in turn, collect more revenue and will, in turn, be able to pay themselves better allowances than what they are getting. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, when you go to rural areas, there was a time when there was a mania in this country for creation of urban centres to the extent that, when you go everywhere, there are townships. Some with no capacity, whatsoever, even to collect revenue of Kshs50,000 per month! One wonders why those small local authorities cannot be amalgamated into bigger ones to form more formidable councils that can deliver services to the people! Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, in the good old days, we used to see local authorities going around even spraying mosquitoes to stamp out malaria. Many older people in this country went to school through bursaries from local authorities. Many people in this country used to benefit immensely from local authorities. Where have we gone wrong? Those are the questions that we should be asking ourselves. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, another critical issue that I would want to urge the October 15, 2008 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 2785 Minister to deal with, as he runs the Ministry responsible for oversight on local authorities, is the manner in which markets are mushrooming all over the country. In the olden days, markets were planned and designated. You will find that if you have a market here, you will go up to Westlands and get another market. What happens these days? Anybody with a parcel of land fronting a road simply wakes up in the morning and starts building a shop. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, when we talk of encouraging provision of services for quality life, we are talking about water, electricity, health facilities, et cetera . How do we provide services like those when the highway between Nairobi and Nakuru is a continuous row of shops and kiosks everywhere? We need to plan our country properly, particularly in a country where only 17 per cent of our land is arable and available for good use. We have to preserve this land. Planning of our country is important. I would want to see a situation where every local authority has a cemetery, for instance, so that we stop these reckless burials and cementing of graves everywhere. We should leave our land for better use in future. If you go to many local authorities, you will find that the residents pay bills for services they do not receive. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, equally important is the provision of water. Water never flows in pipes in most of local authorities, and when it flows, some local authorities never even treat it. Again, this is something that the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government, and all of us, must ensure that the money we are voting to local authorities is put to good use. One would expect that local authorities, particularly the towns and cities, are in competition to attract investment. Throughout my life in this country, I have never seen a single local authority advertise in the newspapers that they have land available and calling upon investors to come and put up a factory, a shopping mall or put up some facilities that will enrich that local authority. They simply wait for the headquarters to plan and tell them what to do. If you go to other countries, you will see that there is competition. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, you will find towns like Thika or Kericho even holding investment seminars in a city like Nairobi, to tell people with entrepreneurial capital and spirit what they can offer, so that they can go and invest in those towns. They inform potential investors on availability of land for market, office blocks, amusement parks, et cetera . That is how towns grow. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, here, in Kenya, they are all seated there waiting. They have now teamed up with the NEMA to frustrate investors. When an investor comes up, the number of hurdles he faces before he even puts up what he wants to put up makes it impossible for one to do business in this country. We cannot grow that way. We need an attitude change, so that the urban centres that we have can be truly urban and give services to the people. With those remarks, I beg to support."
}