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"speaker_name": "Mr. Mwiraria",
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"content": "Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity to join my colleagues who have congratulated the Ministry of Local Government, and particularly the Minister, for the good job they are doing around the country. If you look at Nairobi City, a lot has been said about improved street lighting and cleanliness. Nowadays we see people cleaning the city. Before, it appeared as though the city council had no employees. We see them cutting grass and bushes along the roads. Equally important is the fact that the city council is now planting a lot of trees and flowers along roads. They have also embarked on a project of repairing roads. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the road projects which were started many years ago and financed by the World Bank were stopped when there were allegations of corruption. However, they were restarted after the NARC Government took over, but unfortunately, they are not doing very well. I can cite the example of roads projects in Meru; I have discussed this matter with the Minister. The company which was appointed and given tenders to re-do the roads in Meru Town went ahead and dug up all the roads and laid stones. However, for the last six months nothing has been happening. The people of Meru Town are now up in arms. In fact, they are August 1, 2006 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 2499 blaming the present state of affairs on politicians, especially myself. I know that hon. Kombo has initiated action, but it is really my prayer that the action be enhanced so that the roads are completed in the shortest time possible. Many of our towns are located in areas where there is ample rainfall. However, if you visit these towns you will not see trees or flowers. If what is being done in Nairobi City could be extended to other towns like Meru, this would really be an excellent thing for the country. The hon. Prof. Maathai talked about the problem brought about by plastic bags. It is true that plastics make our towns dirty. I think this is an issue which the Government should take up seriously so that we have in place a system of collecting all used plastic bags for the purpose of recycling. This will ensure that people do not throw them away hapharzadly. People who collect the plastic bags for the purpose of recycling should be given a little cash. We know that plastic does not burn fully, and it leaves waste which will remain forever. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is unfortunate that most of our municipalities and towns do not have dumping sites. Meru Town is one example I can cite. In Meru, waste is dumped in the forest where monkeys get an opportunity to scatter it all over. Sometimes waste is dumped near residences and people do not like that. I think most towns in our country do not have incinerators. I would like to suggest that the Ministry should come up with a system of disposing garbage so that it is completely destroyed. I know that the Minister has been very concerned about the availability of fire brigades. This is one are where as a country, we are really weak. In Meru, last year, there were five fire outbreaks in a span of three months. The fire destroyed slums; in fact, one slum has been destroyed three times in a span of two years. The people of Meru Town cannot do anything because there is no equipment to fight fire. It is important that the Ministry makes this a priority for all our major cities, municipalities and townships. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, let me mention another point that really bothered me. The hon. Y.M. Haji mentioned the fact that most local authorities do not have by-laws. What is even more shocking is that most of our municipalities and towns do not even have master plans. People just build houses the way they want to. You will find a big town with very narrow roads, where no two vehicles can bypass one another. This is because people have encroached on road reserves and built houses there. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, if we want to develop this nation, we need to start off with proper planning of our cities. We need to think 50 years from today, and not just think about tomorrow or five years to come. It is really painful when you visit some parts of Nairobi. People have put up storeyed buildings and big flats, but there is no sewerage and roads, and it is impossible to move when it rains. Let long-term planning be a must for every town or city. Let them be forced to do long-term planning. The Ministry should train town planners and post them to all our towns. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, quite a lot has been said about the use of LATF and LASDAP monies. I want to join those who have stated that LATF and LASDAP money is not properly utilised. I do know that, in some of our municipalities, councillors actually share out the money for bursaries. A councillor is given the money, he puts it in his pockets and decides who to give. He prepares the list of beneficiaries from the bursary fund. The only thing that can be done immediately is to say that nobody will get cash. If bursaries are awarded, the cheques should be drawn by the county councils or municipalities, so that the children could go and collect them, or they are sent to the schools. That is such an important matter. We cannot afford to let that money be used the way it is being used today. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the other point is that, if that money is being given for development, the Ministry should insist on having development projects on which that money will 2500 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES August 1, 2006 be spent. There is no point of giving out the money hoping that local authorities will spend it wisely on development programmes. Many of them, in fact, do not have time to do development projects. Therefore, if you go to some of them, you will find that funds which have been there for two years are still being held by the Ministry. With those few remarks, I beg to support."
}