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{
    "id": 422931,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/422931/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 87,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Odera",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2858,
        "legal_name": "Arthur Papa Odera",
        "slug": "arthur-papa-odera"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, hon. Deputy Speaker; I rise to support this Motion. We know that the very essence of the Equalisation Fund was to attempt to address the differences in standards of living of the people of this country. Knowing that, obviously, identification of those areas is one major step and the ability to change the standards of life of the people in those areas is the next important step. Clearly, that is one of the reasons why we came up with the Equalisation Fund. We were to address the best way to disburse it. We did address things from an average point of view. This country operated on averages for a long time and now we know the folly of averages. That is because the average man or woman does not represent the man in the village who has no food to eat, no road to use, no hospital to go to and no house to sleep in. It is a simple thing in my view. If we compare the ability of the county to identify and attack poverty wherever it is, with the ability of the constituency to identify and to attack poverty wherever it is, the answers are obvious. The constituency is able to do that quicker, much better and more effectively. The lessons can be picked much faster. On the other hand, and for the very reason that we are coming up with the Equalisation Fund, is to disburse resources to areas that need them more than others. The county then, is less able to do that, than the constituency. Therefore, it seems that most of us believe that for devolution to work, the deeper it goes into the grassroots the better. Then we need to support this Bill and make sure that we are able to sense areas of poverty and address them wherever they exist. On the other hand, this Bill is a practical solution to marginalization. This country has operated with areas of extreme poverty for a long time. It is also possible for a county to go forward and leave the marginalized areas behind. It is less possible for a constituency to go forward and ignore areas of marginalization. Therefore the constituency is much better able to handle this Fund, disburse it deeper into the grassroots and address areas and pockets of poverty than the county can. It is also important to note that the Constitution does not talk about counties. It talks about areas. While we might not split hairs on what an area is, we know that within counties, for example my county of Busia, there are areas that may not require the Equalisation Fund and there are others that do. Really, if we want to be fair to the people of this country, we better go deeper into the constituency level where we are better able to map and know where there is poverty or not, and where the Equalisation Fund should go or where it should not. I beg to support."
}