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{
    "id": 477414,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/477414/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 346,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Musila",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 94,
        "legal_name": "David Musila",
        "slug": "david-musila"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I thank you and I will be very brief. First, I want to appreciate the contribution by Sen. Murungi, Sen. Sang and Sen. Kajwang. We have figures here and they look beautiful. For the case of my county, Kitui, I see Kshs6.3 billion. Last year, it was something like Kshs5 billion. They are good figures but during the year that is ending, there has been hue and cry about the manner in which counties have spent the monies that we allocate. This is the place we should start. We are asking for more money but are we satisfied whether the funds that we allocate are properly utilized. Therefore, we must also insist on financial discipline. When I read newspapers every day, you might think governors are doing these things deliberately or they do not know what they are doing. A case in point is what Sen. Sang has just said, about spending money on functions that are not devolved. It is like you have money but you are just dishing out to projects without a proper procedure. I think this Senate must be very clear that when we allocate these funds, they must be properly utilized. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, Senators must be fully involved in the consultations that go on in the counties in budgeting. I do not know whether Senators here are involved because in my case, I am not. We allocate money, we do not participate in budget making, we do not know how it is spent and some of us cannot access the Printed Estimates. You are giving out Kshs6 billion and yet you do not know how it is spent. You just read in the newspapers about street lighting, ambulances and so on. That is why I support the Bill by Sen. Sang. Senators must sit in some forum to get educated and to know how funds are going to be spent. This is a very critical point. During the last one year, the money that was allocated, consultations were done but we do not know why Senators were not included in them. Budgets were made and we only hear quarrels between the governor and Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs) about approvals and so on. We only read about it but we are not involved in this process. Therefore, I want to urge that we must be involved in budget making of counties as well as oversight to make sure that projects that are being funded are funded from allocated funds. The other area that concerns me is the area of collection of revenue. It is apparent that most counties have neglected collecting revenue locally. They just sit and wait for this House to allocate funds from the national Government. That is the money they want to receive and spend. They have forgotten that these funds are given by the national Government to supplement the local revenue that they would have collected. 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."
}