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"id": 298160,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/298160/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Ethuro",
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"speaker": {
"id": 158,
"legal_name": "Ekwee David Ethuro",
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"content": "Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I also rise to contribute to this Bill. In supporting this Bill, I want Prof. Anyang’-Nyong’o to know that my primary responsibility is to contribute and participate in this House. The other one is secondary. In any case, he declared the Amendment Bill which was to pay me, unconstitutional. So, I have really no incentive for working for him because he does not seem to appreciate my services. Having said that, and being a patriotic Kenyan, I offer my services. First, I want to thank the hon. Minister, Mr. Githae. When we were refusing the Motion on the Vote on Account we were asking when he will bring the Appropriation Bill. Why is it that he is taking long to bring the Appropriation Bill? So, we are happy it has been brought. However, we want the Treasury and the Government generally, to treat this House with a bit of respect. Things seem to be always brought late. We have reason to suspect. Why are they being brought late? It is so that we have no time. The whole business of a debating chamber or Parliament is to interrogate the Executive. We cannot do so meaningfully and properly if we are not given time. If we start by reducing the publication period we might also reduce the contents to zero. We hope in future the Government will start learning that there is a timeframe by December and it rolls out the programme so that there is sufficient time for us to engage. I think already we have demonstrated, as a House, that we have a responsibility to the nation and we will work with the Executive in order to achieve the purposes that we all intend for our country. I heard Prof. Anyang’-Nyong’o talk about the philosophy of budgeting and Appropriation Bills which I agree with except that I thought he had gone back to the university. While I agree that every political party has a manifesto and then it comes into programmes, why should he blame us? I want to take it back to the Government side. Who is not allocating money to the sectors as both in the Vision 2030? I want the Government to know that in the supremacy of this Constitution, Article 26 says that any treaty or convention ratified by Kenya shall form part of the law of Kenya under this Constitution. I agree with Prof. Anyang’-Nyong’o that we are making these things rituals. Instead of looking at what conventions and treaties we have ratified as a nation--- The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are considered to be one of those early and primary ones. Why did we ratify the MDGs? Because we said the dehumanising effects of a poor nation must be addressed. What is the current status of the MDG? Apart from the free primary education, MDG number 2, there is nothing else you can write home about. The MDGs are supposed to be realized by the year 2015. Child mortality is still high and I am not even talking about averages. Go to regional disparities now and you will experience that. On maternal mortalities, how many mothers are we losing every day and every year while they are giving birth? Mothers are giving life to this nation and we are losing them. Therefore, Prof. Anyang’-Nyong’o, the Minister for Medical Services, should be happy that last year this House decided that the issue of cancer and particularly because of the albinos we cannot be looking at our people who are born with a condition and die because of the tropical temperatures in which we live and we do not do something as a House if the Government fails to do it. This House through the Budget Committee decided to allocate the Ministry money to purchase, at least, three machines. One is at the Kenyatta National Hospital while the other one is at the Coast, at least, as a start. We hope that this year we should add another three so that, at least, each provincial hospital in the country will have a machine to scan for cancer. We have left it to Prof. Anyang’- Nyong’o, who is a Minister of the Government, to make it like a voluntary individual effort when the Treasury must be allocating him money to roll out the programme for the country as a public service. We have left it to Prof. Anyang-Nyong’o, who is a Minister of the Government, to make it like a voluntary individual effort when you, the Treasury, must be giving him money to roll out the programme for the country as a public service. You want us, professor, to come and not do anything, not even to look at the small figures in order to address a problem that we know is there? We have 80,000 albinos in the country and this Government cannot buy a single bottle of lotion per month, so that you can elongate their lifespan. That we will not allow. We will do our bit until we get it right. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, we went to Abuja as a nation; we have said the education sector must be given money. We are trying. We have said agriculture be given 10 per cent of the total Budget. Do your figures add up to 10 per cent on agriculture? We have given a commitment to give health 15 per cent. Combine both allocations to the Ministry of Medical Services and the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation; what do you have? Six per cent! That is a third of what we wanted and we have committed ourselves to. That is why I am reading that particular Treaty section in our Constitution. It is not my writing. These are the laws we have passed in this House. This is the Constitution that the Government has sworn to defend. This side must look at the Appropriation Bill in totality. The other day I said if the Minister for Finance was so good that his word was law, and we could take it to the bank, then we would not need the bank but the Minister. What has he done? He has ambushed us because he has not taken into account any of the recommendations that we made as a Committee of the House. These are recommendations he promised this House he would take on board. He said if there would be any disagreements, he would persuade us until we agree. You ambush us with the Appropriation Bill! Is that part of the agreement or part of arm twisting, Minister? These things must be said. We must be as good as our words because we are hon. Members; we came here to represent our people and to do what is good for the country. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, we have talked about Vision 2030, which we all agree to subscribe to. It is my prayer that every serious political party--- Kenyans must vote for any political manifesto that ensures that we have a commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Vision 2030. What does our good Government do to the Vision 2030 delivery secretariat? They give them peanuts; Kshs100 million or Kshs200 million. This is a secretariat that is supposed to ensure that the flagship projects under Vision 2030 are current. The Minister for Roads will then come here and tell us in northern Kenya wait for Vision 2030; that is where your roads are. We are the ones of 2030 and there are Kenyans of the year 2012. What discriminatory practices in this day and age that we want to continue with? You are not facilitating; even if we were to wait, at least give us hope to wait. To the Vision 2030 secretariat, under my good friend and able leadership of Director-General Kibati Mugo, you are giving nothing. Are you not frustrating efforts on Vision 2030 as you are frustrating Prof. Anyang-Nyong’o by not giving him the Kshs85 billion he requires? He has been reduced to being a defender of the NHIF as if it is not an independent parastatal. These are the issues we want the Appropriation Bill to deal with, Minister. These are the issues that, when you see me I leave the Chair and come here, I want you to hear from me. You are only lucky that I will not be there with you next year, because we do not know whether we will be in this House or elsewhere. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, to finalize, this House has also passed the Nomadic Education Policy. Up to now, how many local boarding primary schools have we recommended from pastoralist areas for the Government to approve? They do not approve them because there is no money given by the Government. We are interested in MDG II. Is it for the urban or is it for the poor of the poor? The other day I heard the head of the Kenya Secondary Schools talk about the CDF and the bursaries through the CDF. I want him to know, through the Floor of this House, that the bursary is not supposed to be in the CDF kitty. It is supposed to be in the money for infrastructural development. However, because of the huge demand, need and the desire by Members of this House--- All elected people are responsible to ensure kids go to school; we make a special exception in terms of the definition of a development projects under the CDF in order to allow bursaries to be accommodated. I speak as the Chair of the CDF Committee; and I know that most of the constituencies when they do allocation of the CDF post them on the notice boards at their offices."
}