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    "id": 386461,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/386461/?format=api",
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    "content": "We should also be able to put in place the school feeding programme so that the children are also fed. By the time these children are in class two or three, we give them laptops. If we have Kshs70 billion to pump into the education sector per year, honestly, let us not come up with policy statements that make us look very bad on the international platform. Some of us are going to be travelling very soon and we are expected to defend this policy statement. I cannot imagine how on earth I will be able to defend this kind of policy statement. On one hand, we are spending Kshs70 billion to give our children laptops. On the other hand, we are begging donors for food to feed the same children. What is our stature in the international world? Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, secondly, I am not convinced that it came out very clearly through the President’s Address how he intends to create jobs for the more than 70 per cent of the youth who are jobless. All he talked about in his Speech was job creation. I expected the President to synthesize this policy statement to the county and constituency levels. He would have said that the national Government will give the county governments enough money to build, for example, this number of factories or industries in the counties. That makes sense and it is a bit convincing, but not just to say; job creation, job creation. We could do everything else, but if we are not going to create enough jobs for the more than 70 per cent youth in this nation, we are sitting on a very volatile time bomb. We could try to look nice and give promises, but if we are not going to synthesize the issue of job creation, so that it impacts the constituency level. All of us who have or hope to make it in life, are just building castles in the air which could be brought down in five minutes by 70 per cent of very hungry and angry youth who do not care what else you have said in your policy statement. So, let us take this issue very seriously. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was also not very convinced by the President’s Address on the way forward on the issue of the conflict between the Governors and the County Commissioners. He referred to it as a small issue that will be dealt with. In my opinion, this is not a small issue. Devolution was one of the key pillars that made 70 per cent of Kenyans to vote for this Constitution. Anything that touches on devolution has got the potential of just tearing this country apart if it is not well dealt with. So, it is not a small issue at all. This calls for none other than the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of this country to give the way forward. He should tell us who has what mandate between the Governors and the County Commissioners, so that either we find a way of co-existence or we accept that this is an intelligent way of killing devolution by the Executive while still remaining popular on the platform of pretence that they actually support devolution. As politicians, sometimes we are very shrewd. When you sense that wananchi are on the side of devolution, you pretend to support it by word and yet in spirit and deed you do not support it. How do we have Governors who are subordinate to County Commissioners and who are not facilitated and we want to pretend that actually we support devolution? In my opinion, this is a way of killing devolution. We must nip it in the bud. If I am not wrong, we have not seen, as yet, any serious attempts to solve this 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."
}