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{
    "id": 386805,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/386805/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 185,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Sang",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 907,
        "legal_name": "Stephen Kipyego Sang",
        "slug": "stephen-kipyego-sang"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. I have tried severally to catch your eye. I am excited that finally, I was able to catch your eye before the end of this sitting. First, I stand to support the Motion on these two accounts. As it has been mentioned by fellow Senators, the role of the Senate is to protect and to serve the interests of, not only the county, but also the County Governments. In the last three weeks or so, we have seen governors struggling to engage with the County Governments especially on issues touching on the county governments. Kenyans have been wondering what the position of the Senate is. We may not have come out as Senators to assert our authority and to specifically come out clearly that we are the people who are in charge in terms of dealing with the interests of the counties. I think that this, for those who can attend the official opening of the county assemblies, presents an opportunity for us to position ourselves and assert our authority as the Members and the institution that is in place to support the counties and to serve the interests of the counties. I also want to agree with a number of our Senators, especially the Senator for Elgeyo Marakwet who mentioned that if you look at the Standing Orders, you will see that our participation in the County Assemblies is subject to the Standing Orders of the County Assemblies. We know that some of us come from counties where the Speaker and the Governors may not be coming from the same party as we do. It may be important to think through which of the Standing Orders takes precedence in terms of these matters. Is it that we will serve at the mercies of the Speakers of the County Assemblies or do we have a rightful role as Senators in our County Assemblies? If need be, I will be proposing, when the right time comes, that we amend some of the rules that we have in this House and some of the Legislation that was passed in the previous Parliament to allow the Senators, as a matter of right, to attend the sittings of the County Assemblies, if need be, to address some of these things. This is especially in the first two years where we will have a lot of engagements and discussions in terms of trying to entrench devolution in this country. I sympathize with our colleagues who come from very difficult areas and who may not be able to find their way to their County Assemblies because the impression this may create, at the end of the day, is that some of us who will attend are more concerned about our counties than other Senators, especially those elected, who will not attend due to logistical challenges. An impression may be created that they are not keen or interested in serving and protecting the interests of their counties. Probably, in future, it will be important for all of us to be considerate and to discuss these things in good time so that all of us can present the picture that the entire House, especially the County Delegations; are all concerned about the interests of our counties. With those very many remarks, I wish to support the Motion."
}