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"content": "required qualified staff to help them in putting in place the proper budgets for their counties, so that we have realistic figures. We have seen counties unveiling budgets of over Kshs20 billion, while the amount of resources allocated to them is way below Kshs10 billion. So, you ask yourself: Are we going to allow our counties to start from the wrong footing, in terms of starting with a budget of Kshs20 billion? Where the national Government has provided less than Kshs10 billion, maybe they raise about Kshs3 billion or Kshs4 billion from their revenues, and we have a budget deficit of over Kshs10 billion and now have the Governors going round looking for donors. If we are not careful, we are going to start on a wrong footing, where our county governments will amass a lot of resources through debts and, in future, we have challenges to repay our debts. So, it is important that we are able to enhance the capacity of the county governments in terms of developing their budgets. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Senate has the responsibility of playing an oversight role. We have had discussion in this House and even outside this House, during our induction training, where the Senators have asked themselves: How do we play our oversight role in terms of ensuring that the resources sent to the county governments are utilized properly? The current legal infrastructure available does not provide for a clear mechanism for this House and the Senators to participate in the budgeting process at the county level. It would be very crucial for this House to ensure that the Senators have a key role in the development of the county development plan or approved plan. So, I am sure that all of us, when we did our campaigns, had our own manifestos. We had a number of issues that we thought that if we were able to address, then our counties would develop. But we are in this House, our role being legislating and ensuring that county governments have their resources. But at the county level, we have the Governor and county assembly whose responsibility within the County Governments Act, is among other things, to develop the county development plan, and the Senator may not have a role. It is important that we ensure that the Senator, being the protector of the interest of counties, is involved in the development of the county development plan. At an appropriate time, I will bring an amendment to this House that will ensure that we amend the County Governments Act, to establish a County Development Board, that will be chaired possibly by the Senator, and which will bring together all the elected leaders, so that we are able to merge all our manifestos and visions for our county, and have one document. So, in the subsequent years, as we do our budgeting, we will already have one document that all of us agree; that this is where we want to take our counties. Therefore, the budgeting process will not be an exercise within the ambit of only the Governor and the county assembly, but it will have the input of all the stakeholders and leaders within our counties. I will bring that amendment in future but that, obviously, will not affect the budgeting in this financial year. Therefore it is important that we are able to give adequate resources. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in conclusion, I support the Motion with the foreseen amendments in the Committee stage. We hope that we can raise the finances from Kshs210 billion to Kshs238 billion. Secondly, the conditional allocation within the Division of Revenue Bill should be shouldered by the national Government. We cannot count the Kshs20 billion as being part of the resources going to the county governments yet they will be administered by the national government. So, the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}