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{
    "id": 438722,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/438722/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 226,
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    "speaker_name": "",
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    "content": "clearly in the budgeting process, then at the end of the year, we will not be able to tell Kenyans what we will have done with the Budget. They will not be able to answer the most important questions, whether they got value for the money which they have been taxed by the Government. That is an area that as we move forward, the Executive needs to pull up their socks in terms of ensuring that our Budget is clear in terms of targets and outputs. Hon. Speaker, there is another area which also needs improvement. In the Budget for the next financial year, we are going to give to the Semi-Autonomous Government Agencies (SAGAs) a total of Kshs460 billion. In the Budget, these are what we call “block release”. You just have an item giving, say, the Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC), Kshs100 million. There are no further details to this House. What it means is that this House will not have an opportunity to look at that kind of budget in details and see whether it makes sense in terms of developing this country. As we move forward, it is important that we start getting itemised budgets for the parastatals, so that as a House, we can see where the money goes. We are all aware of the saying that “the devil is in the details”. If we are able to know the details, as a House, we will be able to do justice. Additionally, looking at page 15 of this Budget, Item No.38, the Government is coming up with some kind of a new approach they are calling “leasing of movable assets”. Instead of buying, you lease. It is important that the Government does a proper cost-benefit analysis on this policy. Unless we do so, we may not be sure whether buying is cheaper or expensive. I want to give an example. In the next financial year’s Budget, we have provided Kshs3.4 billion for lease of medical equipment. This will be done for two health facilities in each county, which means we are talking about 94 medical facilities. If you divide Kshs3.4 billion by 94 and divide by 12, it will give an estimate of about Kshs3 million to be spent every month on leasing of equipment in a medical institution. Unless we are told what equipment will be leased at Kshs3 million per month--- Hon. Speaker, I am sure that even where you sit, at your level, when you hear about Kshs3 million being allocated for use by a hospital for lease of equipment per month, it must be bothering you. I imagine my mother who is somewhere in the rural areas hearing about this amount of money being spent by a hospital every month for lease of equipment. So, what we are saying is that, whereas this might be a very good idea, it is important that the Government provides to Kenyans a cost-benefit analysis, so that we can be aware of what is happening. We have dealt with Budgets in the past. One of the challenges that have always been experienced by the Ministries, Departments and Government agencies is that of Exchequer releases. We approve Budgets but the Ministries, Departments and Government agencies are not given money in good time for them to implement their programmes. It is important that we request the National Treasury to make sure that whatever amount has been approved in this Budget, the actual cash is made available in good time in order for the spending entities to have sufficient time to implement their programmes. It will be unfair for us to put the money in the Budget only for that money to be released to the spending entities in January. It means that we will have lost six months of implementation. The problem of low absorption rate will never end if this problem is not solved. 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."
}