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{
    "id": 429157,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/429157/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 376,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Ochieng",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2955,
        "legal_name": "David Ouma Ochieng'",
        "slug": "david-ouma-ochieng"
    },
    "content": "not see that science when we look at this Bill. We also do not see the mathematics and meticulousness in trying to make sure what is being given to us has gone through some thinking. It is as if there is no new constitution with provisions on what should be done and followed when we are preparing this Bill. That is why we are doing allocation of revenue between the national Government and county governments without costing the functions of either body. We have not done the costing of functions of the National Government as they are now nor have we cost the functions of the county governments as they are now. This is the case and yet we are saying that we are using the figures of 2009/2010 Financial Year. We have 2011, 2012 and 2013 figures. So, how do you know? No wonder you have been blaming counties. As much as we are celebrating saying that 43 per cent of the monies have gone to the county governments, we do not know how much it is that will be used for development. Probably, out of the 43 per cent, 40 per cent will be used for paying salaries and wages because no science has gone into it. We do not know whether out of Kshs226 billion only Kshs6 billion will be used for development. Hon. Deputy Speaker, that is why in the coming years, the Treasury and the relevant Committee of this House should ensure that we are able to double efforts and the functions of the county governments as well as the national Government. That is how we can know that the money we are allocating will be used to do something incremental in this country. Hon. Deputy Speaker, I want to talk about money set aside for the national debt. We are paying for Ken-Ren and Anglo-Leasing, which are covered under the national debt. We need to go down and see where that money is going to, so that we can make some saving because that money keeps increasing every year. That is why I said that it is not scientific! It is just being done in the same old days of KANU and NARC, when things used to be lumped together and you say that the Budget is here. Hon. Deputy Speaker, the role we are playing is not supposed to be abdicated to the National Treasury. It is our role! We should sit down here and do the allocation instead of being brought figures which we just pass. The National Assembly must ensure that it sits down and goes through what is being proposed with a tooth comb because that is our role. The idea that things are being brought to this National Assembly and we sit here for two and a half hours and say that we have now debated and, therefore, we should now pass the allocation, we are not playing our role rightly. Hon. Deputy Speaker, if I can continue, we are voting so much money for Government investments, but we are not getting enough returns from those investments. In future, we should also have investments but we should be shown how much the Government is getting from its investments as part of the money that we are raising as a country. Hon. Deputy Speaker, devolution is important but there is too much ado about it for nothing. Let us not fear when we see things go wrong with devolution. We must point them out and ensure that we are not throwing good money after bad money. We must ensure that we are sending money to the counties and that money is going to be used for the right purpose. I do think that the counties have no capacity to use the money that is being proposed to be taken down in terms of Rural Electrification Authority (REA). The role of REA in this country is known and I do not think any county in this country has the capacity to undertake the role of REA as it is currently. We cannot throw away money The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}