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{
    "id": 420140,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/420140/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 131,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Dr.) Pukose",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1458,
        "legal_name": "Robert Pukose",
        "slug": "robert-pukose"
    },
    "content": "for a commodity that we could have gotten at a much lower price? Are we getting value for money? Is the investment that the Government undertakes worth the cash used? These are areas we need to look at. The PAC, the Office of the Auditor-General and other people involved in accounting for public expenditure need to up their game. They need to move faster, so that we can be discussing current issues. If we debate a report in this House, we should be able to interrogate matters more effectively and link the various issues that will come up with the existing Ministries. That way, we will be able to come up with reports that can inform the ethics and anti-corruption commission to follow up the matter with the culpable individuals and recover some of the lost money. That way, we can determine how this country can move to the next level. Currently, we are talking about money that was sent to the counties in the last financial year. People are saying that the amount is being reduced from Kshs239 billion to Kshs229 billion. A big chunk of the Kshs210 billion that was given to counties last year is still lying idle at the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK). It is not earning any interest. It is not invested. It is not being utilised by the counties. Why should we give the counties more money if they are unable to spend what we gave them last year? The financial years closes on 30th June. The accounting system that we have in place is such that all the money that will not have been utilised or committed at the end of the accounting period will go back to the Government. So, even as we talk about giving more money to the county governments, we should be talking about how much of the money that is allocated to them was absorbed. An analysis of how much money the counties are utilising in development and recurrent expenditure leaves a lot to be desired. We are talking of a wage bill that is almost out of control, but we should ask ourselves how many people the counties have employed since the beginning of devolution. The counties have employed more than 15,000 new employees. Yesterday, I said that a big state like Texas, USA, has only one governor. Can we reduce the number of counties to 14? Let us engage ourselves in that debate. If need be, let us go for a referendum. As we are all aware, many doctors are resigning from the public service. The Government spends a lot of money to train a single doctor, but at the end of the day, we are not able to utilise them. We are creating an environment that is forcing doctors to resign from public service. How is the public going to benefit with a big patient to doctor ratio? With those few remarks, I beg to support."
}