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{
    "id": 468062,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/468062/?format=api",
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    "content": "make much contribution, I would like to, not only highlight but to begin by making a disclaimer. My disclaimer is that my support, with an amendment to this Bill is not tantamount to supporting the notion that was earlier created by the National Assembly that, indeed, this House does not have a role to play in the Division of Revenue Bill. Therefore, my contributions will absolutely be without prejudice. I wish to acknowledge the fact that I join the House in expressing goodwill to the people of this country and to the counties that, indeed, we have been mandated by the Constitution to be guardians. I join them in that spirit such that when we contribute and discuss this Bill, we should do so, absolutely on the basis of ensuring that, indeed, the people of this country continue to enjoy the services and the lives they should enjoy as bestowed upon them by the Bill of Rights in the Constitution. However, there are very important issues that we should highlight as we discuss this Bill. One of the issues I will bring to the attention of this House is, indeed, the urgent necessity to review the parameters that are used to determine the amounts which are allocated to the counties as it is included in this Bill. I say this with a reason. I will compare a Bill which has been presented here to one that has been discussed by the Parliamentary Budget Committee. I will use my County of Kiambu as an example. The Bill shows that Kiambu County is supposed to receive Kshs7.1 billion. Upon the application of the parameters which have been drawn by the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA), the allocation to my county drops to Kshs6.1 billion. That means that by sheer variance of those two comparisons, the Kiambu County lost a whole Kshs1 billion. That is notwithstanding the fact that, indeed, even if we were to receive the Kshs7.1 billion – I believe this is spread among all counties – the amount would be nowhere near meeting the needs leave alone the functions as devolved to the counties. This also brings us to the other important issue that we need to flag and highlight. In the Constitution, it is provided that the share that is received by the national Government can be shared with the counties in a way of supplementing what has already been allocated to the counties. I would like to remind my colleagues of the necessity of ensuring that, indeed, when these funds have been allocated to the counties, they are spent prudently and responsibly. That is a constitutional mandate which has been bestowed upon this House. I would also like to highlight the fact that, indeed, according to the functions that have been devolved to the counties and upon receiving these allocations, it is clear that the funds that will be received will not be adequate. Therefore, this Bill can only be passed on a very important condition. The condition is that we must move to discuss this Bill and subsequently pass it. The difference that will arise out of the costing of the devolved functions and the amounts received must be met by the national Government. The national Government must be ready, after these allocations have been received, to meet the difference between the cost of the functions and the amounts that will have been received. It is the only way that we will have acted responsibly as a House. I also want to remind the House and the county governments of the necessity to be responsible in the process of making budgets. I would propose highly that in future, when county governments are considering their budget making teams, these teams must 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."
}