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"speaker_name": "Mr. M'Mukindia",
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"legal_name": "Kirugi Joseph Laiboni M'Mukindia",
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"content": "Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am addressing the Minister. Why is that so, Mr. Minister? I really believe and wish to call upon the Minister, knowing that he has got a big stick, to wield this big stick to ensure that those who are technically trained and are working in his Ministry, do their job. I am sure he is doing that, but in the past, it has not been done. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the separation of the roads section is in three areas, the National Highways Authority, the Urban Roads Authority and the Rural Roads Authority. I believe this will assist in making it easier to manage our roads. But I would also want to echo the call by hon. Maore that before that is done, perhaps, we should do a re-classification of all the roads, if it has not been done already. This is because it is important to ensure that the urban centres take their share of roads, the rural areas the same, to ensure that there is better management. At the end of the day, if we do not have absolutely qualified people to do these jobs, again, we will all have the same problems. I would propose to the Minister that in looking for managers for these three roads authorities, he should try and do it in a competitive way to ensure that only the best can be the managers in those three authorities. We have a long backlog of roads that need to be done in order to speed up economic development to ensure that we go beyond the 6.1 per cent GDP growth rate. 1726 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES June 12, 2007 We need to do roads very fast. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, on the issue of financing, this is an issue that has been talked about for a long time. I believe ten years ago, the Malaysians visited this country as part of an association team to see what roads they could do on a private-public partnership basis. Now, ten years down the line, and I again congratulate the Minister, this is when they are creating the necessary infrastructure to allow that to happen. If we had done this ten years ago, this country would be miles ahead in terms of our roads infrastructure. It is not the only one. If you look at our Ports Development Authority, it is exactly the same thing. We are caught in a time warp. So, while we appreciate what the Minister for Roads and Public Works is doing, we should also take this opportunity to ask other Ministries which are caught up in the past, which also have these ancient organisational structures, which also have these ancient practices and legal structures, to move quickly and bring in the necessary amendments or new Bills to this House to be debated and passed in order to ensure that they do not slow down our economic development. It is also instructive that while we do not have sufficient capacity to undertake all the works that the Ministry is now putting out in tenders every year, perhaps, when the Minister comes to reply, he may wish to highlight what the Ministry is doing to ensure that they equip indigenous contractors with the necessary skills and financial ability, so that we keep some of this money in this country. While we appreciate that we must give the best people the biggest jobs, this cannot go on forever. For any development to take place, the Government has to set the pace. There is no excuse. There is nowhere in the world where you say that the private sector should take the lead. The private sector is a follower in any country. The Government has to lead. In this case, I would be very appreciative if the Minister could set an example to other Ministries involved in infrastructural development to ensure that in so far as the amount of money he spends in his Ministry every year, at least 40 per cent of it remains in this country. The necessary skills should be imparted to the indigenous people so that in the long-term we do not have to depend on foreigners to construct our roads."
}