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"content": "I wonder if today we called back the same people to Uhuru Park and did the same ceremony, whether they would be as ecstatic as they were on that day, given what we have done within the few months with this Constitution. I think and believe that this is the right time to apply the thermometer to the national temperature and ask ourselves: Do the Kenyan people feel us anymore after entrusting us with the leadership of this country? Are we able to drive this new vehicle of national goodwill to a destiny expected by our people? Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have been involved in a quite a number of county visits across this nation. If you visit one Governor in this area, they say: “Oh, we have been reduced to payroll masters. We have no money to do any development for our people.” If you go to the other one, there is a different complaint: “We are completely unable to even pay the staff that we have.” If you go to the other one, the complaint is the same: “We are unable to build even one road.” If we did an overall assessment, probably, more than 90 per cent of all our Governors will either not be positive or optimistic about the future or even happy to be sitting where they are sitting. It is time to address the issues and ask ourselves; where have we departed from the course? This is a great opportunity for us to do so. We have clustered counties in various regions so that we can receive the delegations and address them on the issues of transfer of functions. This is actually the bedrock of devolution. As we meet and receive those delegations, I want to hasten to add, especially on our part as Senate, that we need to be fully prepared with all the appeals that each county has made differently such that we are able to address them and deal with them to their satisfaction. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is also important that we caution the county delegations, as they prepare to come to meet us beginning tomorrow morning--- I will be sitting here in Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) with my team of Senators, waiting for delegations from five counties, including my own Kiambu County. We will expect, for example, to deal with the Controller of Budget who the other day told us that less than half of the counties have complied and are going to be receiving their budgets for this particular season. From what we heard from the meetings we had with TA, the people themselves at the counties level and even what we heard while debating the Bill by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale in the Second Reading, there are issues that distract the Governors and county governments from performing. We want them to concentrate on issues of development so that we can develop this country together. We do not want them to concentrate on issues that will not help their counties. If that is the gauge that we will be using to determine whether we are still on course, then we must re-look and re-read our book on which way to drive devolution. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this House is the one which has been entrusted by this Constitution to ensure that, not only the spirit of devolution remains alive, but it is realized. We, as a House, will do everything that we have to do to make sure that all the pertinent issues that are unaddressed are addressed for devolution to work. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, as my colleagues who have spoken here earlier have said, we have real biting issues which cannot be wished away, for example, the health and education issues. Those can never be wished away. We must address them first hand. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I support this Motion. I also want to request and appeal to my colleagues to make sure that they come with reports. Let us come with comprehensive reports that will assist us to realize our dream of devolution."
}