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{
    "id": 467715,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/467715/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 202,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Prof.) Lonyangapuo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 447,
        "legal_name": "John Krop Lonyangapuo",
        "slug": "john-lonyangapuo"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I stand to reply. In doing so, I would like to thank my colleagues who have contributed to this Bill and pointed out issues that need to be addressed. This Bill has come at a time when the Senate needs to be guided in terms of the Division of Revenue Act which is now law. We also had agreed that we should continue to debate the County Allocation of Revenue Bill so that our counties can begin to function now that the Government is about to release funds. In fact, they are waiting for the Bill to be passed. But if there will be need for additional funds, a request can be done with regard to that. Hon. Senators referred to the County Allocation for the Financial Year 2013/2014 table. There are two columns which are very interesting. The first one is on the constitutional minimum allocation of 15 per cent. This is audited revenue which the national Treasury says totals to Kshs91 billion. Column two talks about conditional and unconditional allocation based on a formula which totals to Kshs63 billion. This shows the total amount. There is another one which is the conditional allocation. Hon. Senators referred to Article 203(2) of the Constitution. It says:- “For every financial year, the equitable share of the revenue raised nationally that is allocated to county governments shall be not less than 15 per cent of all revenue collected by the national government.” Hon. Senators have raised the issue of audited revenue accounts which are very old. These are the audited accounts of 2011/2012 Financial Year. These are two years old. Two weeks ago, the Government said that it had collected a staggering Kshs800 billion exceeding the targeted amount by 14 per cent. That is what the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) indicated. This means that this Government can give the current figures and allocations without digging into the history of two years ago. We are also talking about a digital Government. We can get the relevant data as it is. We need to look at this. We are introducing another column which talks about a plus “b” which does not go hand in hand with what is in the Constitution. As I come to the close of my reply, I will refer to a rider in Clause 1(5) preliminary that explains why the conditional allocation is given. You will see that this is meant to provide for the funding of regional referral hospitals and nothing else and to ensure continuation of essential services by the county governments in the manner set out in column “D” of the Schedule. When you talk about referrals, Nairobi ranks 30 in that column. It has been allocated Kshs7,743,130,661. I expected the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital which is in Uasin Gishu to be the second in being given a lot of money. However, it has been given a paltry Kshs300 million. It has even been overtaken by smaller hospitals. Hon. Senators have said that this column should be understood clearly so that services in big hospitals are not disrupted. We, as Senators, also note that the involvement of the Senate is very critical as it is described in the Constitution. The CRA generates its draft and it is supposed to supply it to the Senate. The Senate discusses this with the Treasury. We will take this seriously as the Senate Majority Leader has indicated. We should make sure that the Senate plays its rightful role. This is the first Bill we are presenting under the devolved government. This is just the first step. Hon. Senators will continue to look at it. We will also look at The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}