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"content": "First, it is good to note that the Controller of Budget is doing the work she should be doing, that is, controlling budgets. In this instance it was a fact that figures were altered and the Controller of Budget caught this on time and brought it to the attention of the relevant parties, made corrections and discussed the issue with the Senate Committee on Finance, Commerce and Economic Affairs. We both agreed on the solution to the problem in the interest of both the executive of Turkana County and the county assembly. As my colleague has said, that is the first thing that is important to underscore; that mistakes can occur and when they do, the blame game should not be carried to its absurdity, but a solution should be looked for through the relevant institutions. In this particular case, it is the Controller of Budget. The second thing that is important to note is that the knowledge of the budget- making system and the process involved in arriving at budgets is extremely vital. This applies to both the executive and the legislature at the national and county levels. There is nothing more important than money and resources in ensuring that devolution works. If the institutions responsible for raising the money and the resources, that is the legislature and two, using that money to implement the programmes, that is the executive - if both do not understand the system of budget-making and the processes involved, then we can be in a lot of problems. I must congratulate Turkana County, along with other counties, which, although time was very short in this past budget, they managed to, at least, produce budgets. They also made sure that they followed the process, notwithstanding the fact that they were not as properly prepared as they should have been. Even after making mistakes, they were prepared to listen to the corrections that were brought forth. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, there is this animal called IFMIS. There is nobody more versed in the intricacies of IFMIS than Sen. Kagwe. When it comes to things that involve fibre optics and information flowing through veins and arteries, he apparently has specialized in this mystery. Nonetheless, IFMIS is extremely important in that it is what you might call the computer connectivity, in simple language, among and between various financial managers and institutions of Government. If county governments and assemblies are not IFMIS connected or IFMIS initiated, then problems occur. We, in the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Economic Affairs have had discussions with the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of National Treasury, Mr. Henry Rotich and his team and the Controller of Budget as well as the Auditor and Controller General. We are all in agreement that no matter how under developed a county is, for example, Tana River County, all counties must, without any exception, be connected to the Treasury and other financial institutions using IFMIS. Some of the bureaucrats in Government have been made to believe that this connectivity can only occur with donor support. If we do this, we shall delay the process. As we pointed it out to them yesterday, this is not rocket science. The 65,000 kilometres that Sen. Kagwe always points out that are necessary to be laid out for fibre optic to make things like IFMIS work should be fast-tracked, so that Turkana County does not suffer problems of communication just because of lack of connectivity through IFMIS. Finally, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, since all of us are on a learning curve regarding financial systems and budgeting in the counties, we in the Senate, the county assemblies and the county executives, it is high time that the Senate Committee on Finance, 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."
}