Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 301897,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/301897/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 210,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Raila",
    "speaker_title": "The Prime Minister",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 195,
        "legal_name": "Raila Amolo Odinga",
        "slug": "raila-odinga"
    },
    "content": "Secondly, I would want it known that before Ministers travel out of the country, they have to get clearance and approval from the President. Therefore, a Minister has to show that the trip that he or she is about to make has some benefits to the Government. He or she should show that he or she has been invited, or that there is official duty relevant to his or her Ministry that he or she is going to perform during that particular trip. Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is only after such information has been provided that the President gives clearance to a Minister. Without such clearance, a Minister cannot exit the airport, unlike for hon. Members of Parliament. So, my position is that services should not suffer. When Ministers are outside the country, they are also working for and on behalf of the people of Kenya. Hon. Mbau said that Parliament had made a decision to reduce the travel expenditure by 50 per cent, and he wants me to confirm the wisdom of the Budget Committee in reduction of the same. Mr. Speaker, Sir, arbitrary action in this kind of situation will not really help. You do not just look at what we get locally. Sometimes Ministers have to travel out to negotiate on behalf of the Government. I want to give an example. I recently went on a tour to the Republic of China. That trip may have cost between Kshs1 million and Kshs2 million, but I managed to negotiate for grants and soft loans worth more than Kshs5 billion."
}