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{
    "id": 484840,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/484840/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 347,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Midiwo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 184,
        "legal_name": "Washington Jakoyo Midiwo",
        "slug": "jakoyo-midiwo"
    },
    "content": "For the ears of the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee, a wrong trend is being set by politicians in this country and they are the ones who have decided that devolution is not good for us. However, we want to say that we must separate devolution, governors and MCAs. Devolution is taking wealth to our people. I tell you I was in Siaya, my county and I saw constructions going on. The youth are not begging. People have new cars like it is in Kiambu and Nyeri. We want it to be like that. Every Kenyan has a right to enjoy their tax money. But let me advise the Budget and Appropriations Committee, in the next Budget, please fund the Office of the Auditor- General so that he is in Migori, Nyeri, Wajir and everywhere so that there are checks and balances on the ground. We cannot say: “Show us what you have done with the money.” If you want somebody to do anything with money, you would be issuing the counties with monies quarterly and not monthly. The noise at the county level is because somebody in the Executive has decided to break the law, to give the county governments little bit of money every month and then they are constantly in deficit. We must face reality. Because our colleagues refused dialogue, you cannot tell us that we cannot go for a plebiscite. We will go! We want to put everything in law. We said that 20 per cent was bad in the Constitution: 47 counties, for example, are too many and we cannot afford them. Let us sit down and talk and say how many of them we can afford so that you reduce the number of the executives across the country. We will reduce the size of the governments and leave the rest of the money for development. We can do that but there is this tendency that only a section of the country is right and has ideas. This Constitution was largely brought to this country by people on this side. That was them! People fought for this. What we are saying is that we want to correct the wrong things. We want the Senators--- By the way, I really enjoy the maturity in the Senate but I do not enjoy the Senators talking at governors in funerals. It is not helping this country; it will kill devolution. Senators must restrain themselves. We are asking: What size of government befits this country? Can this country pay 2,200 MCAs? Our original idea was 1,400. We need to go to that and we need a referendum for it. The way you nominate people into county assemblies is also an issue. My county of Siaya has 50 but we only elected 30. What formula is that? Can it be a good formula that we are forced to nominate 18 people 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."
}