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{
"id": 282305,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/282305/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Ole Metito",
"speaker_title": "The Assistant Minister for Regional Development Authorities",
"speaker": {
"id": 199,
"legal_name": "Judah Katoo Ole-Metito",
"slug": "judah-ole-metito"
},
"content": " Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to take this opportunity to support this Motion. I really want to congratulate His Excellency the President for the way he has ably expressed the policy statement of his Government. His Excellency the President’s address to this House and the nation at large was basically a report card on his Government during his tenure. If you recall, the President started by saying that he first addressed this House as the Head of state and Head of the Government on 18th February, 2003 and he went on to enumerate his successes for at least the nine years that he has been the Head of State and Head of Government in this country. I really want to appreciate the following successes. On the economic front, His Excellency the President said that when he took over in 2003, the economic growth of this country was 0.8 per cent and by 2007, it was 7 per cent. Just within those five years, there was a growth rate of 775 per cent. It is very rare to achieve such a growth rate. The estimated growth rate for this year as His Excellency said is about 5.5 per cent. Even with the post-election violence, the global economic recession and the high oil prices that determine economic growth, we have still managed to move from 0.8 per cent to 5.5 per cent, an economic growth rate of 587 per cent, during his tenure. On education, His Excellency the President said that when he took over in 2003, the number of primary school-going children was 5.9 million and by now, it is 10 million. In that period, the positive recorded margin was 69 per cent. That is very commendable. If you go to university records, His Excellency the President said that in 2003, there were 60,000 university students in this country. Currently, there are 200,000 university students. That gives you a positive increase of 233 per cent. On electricity, by the time His Excellency the President took over in 2003, there were 700,000 electricity connections in this country. Currently, there are 1.7 million electricity connections. That is an increase of 143 per cent. If we were to be genuine and understand that these are big and very expensive projects which have a lot of impact both on the social and economic wellbeing of the people of this country, we will definitely agree that the score card for His Excellency the President for the nine years has been very impressive. During his tenure, we have had 2,700 kilometres of tarmac road and 47,000 kilometres of tarmac road on rehabilitated roads. I wish my good friend, hon. Duale is still here because he was saying that in Garissa County, there is not a single tarmac road during the tenure of His Excellency the President out of the 2,700 kilometers. I am reliably informed that for the first time in Garissa, there are 28 kilometres of tarmac road in Dujis Constituency. We should be fair and give His Excellency the President a commendable report for these projects. On fishing, His Excellency the President said that the number of fish ponds in the country rose from 4,000 to 20,000, an increase of 400 per cent. If we are to be fair to His Excellency the President and his team in the Government, from 2003 to date, we have seen a lot of changes. The fact is that a lot of mess had been done there before, which has really taken us back, and to correct it required the energy, the policies and the determination of His Excellency the President, as he has said, to take us to that other level. Take for instance the CDF, which is a good legacy; it came in during the tenure of His Excellency the President, Mwai Kibaki. The CDF has really transformed this country. It was rejected in the previous regime but during this time, he agreed and assented to the CDF Act, which became law. From that time to date, Kshs100 billion has been disbursed to constituencies through the CDF. Just to mention a few, 1,000 dispensaries and 10,000 classrooms have been built across the country using the CDF."
}