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{
    "id": 385549,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/385549/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 156,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
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    "speaker": null,
    "content": "There are counties in Kenya where moving from one place to another is simply a nightmare. There are also parts of this country where children below the age of 10 have never seen a car. The reason for this is because there is no road network that any car can ride on including our own Government vehicles which should be taking officers to see our people. That is why we hear about some primitive activities going on in some parts of Kenya like cattle rustling. This would easily be harnessed and stopped if there was a proper road network. When I hear my colleagues saying that they have a problem with the road networks in their counties, I do not know whether they know the kind of impact we are talking about. I am talking about two types of roads. Those of you who have had road networks since 1963, which is 50 years ago, have enjoyed their bit except that the roads are not everlasting. So, you have come back to where we are. There are some counties that have no single road network which has ever been opened. I want us to look into these two scenarios. While others are looking for money for the rehabilitation of roads, others like me from West Pokot County, those from Turkana County, Elgeyo Marakwet County and Trans Nzoia County who are my neighbours have no road network. The only one road that we are told is tarmacked leads from Nairobi to Southern Sudan and coincidentally passes through Kapenguria and we do not use it. There is a road from Eldoret to Kitale which is about 70 kilometres. We used to take about 40 minutes here but now you have to chew about two hours on the road. I do not know whether my colleague, the Senator from Turkana, has ever gone home since he was elected because of the road. He has to think about it before going. This is my proposal on top of what we are asking. We are asking that as we get reports through the Committee on Energy, Roads and Transport, that we also have the masterplan for all the roads, in the entire country, to each county so that when we are allocating money, we look at each sector and not the money being given to each county. I need to know how many roads have been opened in West Pokot this year and in Mandera, among other areas. We should also look at the activities being carried out to see whether they are repairing roads or constructing new roads so that they open up the country well. In the new Constitution, Article 204(2) talks about the Equalisation Fund and says; 204. (1) “There is established an Equalisation Fund into which shall be paid one half per cent of all the revenue collected by the national government each year calculated on the basis of the most recent audited accounts of revenue received, as approved by the National Assembly. (2) The national government shall use the Equalisation Fund only to provide basic services including water, roads, health facilities and electricity to marginalised areas to the extent necessary to bring the quality of those services in those areas to the level generally enjoyed by the rest of the nation, so far as possible.” Roads, to me, are a priority before anything else. At the Kapenguria District Hospital, which is now a county hospital, you will find that patients who are taken there need blood and yet we do not have a blood bank. We are told that this is the only hospital other than the referral hospital in Nairobi, Kenyatta Hospital and the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital that uses a lot of blood. When you follow this, you will 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."
}