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{
    "id": 437132,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/437132/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 366,
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    "content": "Further Article 203(1)(f) talks of “developmental and other needs of counties.” Somebody made a very good point here. I think it was Sen. Kagwe. He said that we should have special stimulus programmes for counties. When counties develop, the nation develops. When the County of Mombasa runs efficiently and the port brings income to this nation, the nation develops. When the Port of Kisumu is functioning and there is maritime traffic on Lake Victoria connecting Kenya with the East African Community countries, the nation develops. So, nobody from the central government should view money allocated to the counties progressively to empower the counties as anything distracting from national development. The counties are, indeed, the foundation on which national development will be achieved. In any case, this Constitution gives the national government extremely important functions such as defence, intelligence, internal security, foreign relations, planning, national development and ensuring that Vision 2030 flagship projects are pursued and implemented. These are functions big enough to keep the national Government busy. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, when it comes to development functions that have now gone to the counties, the national cake should be divided in such a way that those provisions of the Constitution that I have just read are realized. We should not develop a mentality that there is a tug of war with people who want to get more money to the national Government because the national Government must get more money. No! The national Government should only get money in so far as that money goes to make the national Government perform its functions. It is the functions that are important. Unfortunately, even in this year’s Budget, from the report of the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Budget, we were not satisfied that budgeting at the national level was done on the basis of functions. There was much more emphasis on doing a functional analysis of responsibility at the county level and national level. We do hope – and the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Budget has committed itself to this – that we shall have discussions with budget and finance committees of the National Assembly, so that we speak with one voice as a nation and use our resources to develop counties effectively, because without developing counties, we are not going to develop the national Government. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, finally, it is important to ensure that the Constitution constitutionally speaks of Parliament when it talks of revenue allocation. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I beg to support."
}