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{
    "id": 438712,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/438712/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 216,
    "type": "other",
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    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Hon. Speaker, I hope in this Session we shall fully apply Article 153(3) which requires Cabinet Secretaries to appear before Committees of Parliament to answer questions because we have been having problems. This time we want those Cabinet Secretaries to appear before Committees and also to appear before the House to answer questions because we do not want to be asking questions which no one answers and then we start blaming Chairpersons of Committees. Hon. Speaker, I am happy about the Equalisation Fund because they will receive Kshs3.4 billion in line with Article 204 of the Constitution. The Fund will help marginalized areas so that the economy can grow equally across the country. As I have said before, the Budget is very ambitious. In terms of revenue collection, I think something should be done because we are not collecting as much as we should. We can understand this because the economy is not growing at a double digit. This is an ambitious budget and we hope this Committee looks into ways of netting more people to pay taxes. Hon. Speaker, the Executive must be guided by Article 227 (1) of the Constitution in procuring goods and services. It reads as follows:- “When a State organ or any other public entity contracts for goods or services, it shall do so in accordance with a system that is fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and cost-effective.” Hon. Speaker, while we praise the Committee for a good job, it is high time we started looking at these contracts, especially security contracts. Any allocation to security agencies should be scrutinized and analyzed because the Constitution requires that it should be competitive, transparent and should be scrutinized by people’s representatives. It should not be left to go the way it has been done in the past. Hon. Speaker, the additional Kshs1.046 billion to the National Land Commission will go a long way to help it execute its mandate. I am appealing to His Excellency the President, whom I have a lot of respect for, to intervene because there has been a very big war. The National Land Commission cannot execute its mandate and the Ministry of Lands cannot move. Let it be sorted out so that people can get their title deeds and other services so that they may also help the economy to grow. I also want to say that the additional Kshs100 million to the Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC) is healthy because of the expanded mandate of the Commission as per Section 53 of the County Governments Act and subsequent sections (6) (1) (c), (g) and (h) of the KLRC Act which mandate it to assist counties in drafting legislation as per Article 185(2) of the Constitution. Hon. Speaker, I just want to say this: I am happy that the Committee allocated money for those stalled projects like the Sasumuwa Dam, Umma Dam in Kitui and the dam in Kajiado. It is good that we provide water to Kenyans because water is life and it is something that has not been taken very keenly by the previous Budgets. But this time, I thank the Committee because they looked at that. My own misgiving on the Committee’s allocation is that they never allocated anything for Kibwezi-Kitui-Mwingi-Maua Road that connects Ethiopia and this is the lifeline of this country. It will cut the distance from Mombasa to Ethiopia and northern Kenya by more than 500 kilometers yet there was no allocation. I want to appeal to this Committee headed by the very able hon. Musyimi, in the next Budget, allocate something 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."
}