HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept
{
"id": 513177,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/513177/?format=api",
"text_counter": 178,
"type": "other",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "An addition, 13 counties have held meetings with the CRA and agreed on a need basis where adjustments need to be done with regard to the amounts that have been allocated. These include Homa Bay, Kajiado, Kericho, Kilifi, Kitui, Kwale, Lamu, Machakos, Mombasa, Nyandarua, Tharaka-Nithi, Siaya and Turkana. Four counties which include Embu, Nakuru, Nairobi and Tana River, are the only ones which have neither complied with the ceilings nor held discussions with the CRA. That is the status as I speak. I want to confirm to the House that as I speak, the total amount of money – this is provided for in this Report – that has been disbursed to the county assemblies up to 17th of this month - amounts to Kshs12.6 billion. The details for every county are there. This depends on the way the requisition has been made. So, you will find that some counties have taken almost three-quarters because that time has already gone and we are left with the fourth quarter. Some counties may not have taken all the three. However, there are figures for every county there to show that the Exchequer was released. Lastly, I want to go to the recommendations of this Committee. I seek the indulgence of Sen. Hassan because the specific responses to his Statement are also provided and he has a copy of this. Our recommendation, in view of what I have said, as a Senate is that ceilings on the Recurrent Expenditure for the Financial Year 2014/2015 were lawfully issued, but not binding as per the court ruling. The courts had approved withdrawals of up to 75 per cent of the ceilings for the first three quarters for the remaining three months, April to June. In our meeting on that day, we also advised both CRA and the Controller of Budget to do so immediately on the same. Secondly, we have directed the Controller of Budget the CRA and the TA, in consultation with the Director of Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS), to immediately embark on allowing county assemblies to directly access or have their requisitioned funds credited into their operational accounts immediately after the Exchequer’s release instead of passing through the accounts of the county executive. This, they have undertaken that they will give us their progress report within a month. It is now three weeks. In three weeks’ time, we should know how far they have gone in that undertaking. Mr. Speaker, Sir, we also recommended that for 2015/2016 Financial Year, where there is an Act of Parliament that already provides for CRA to submit a recommendation to this House for its approval, we are also recommending that the Senate should develop guidelines for approval of the recommendation of CRA. Our Committee will look at that so that there is a structured way of reviewing their proposal when it comes to the House so that it can be approved. We will recommend that that process includes an opportunity to sit with MCAs. In this regard, we had already advised CRA to sit with every county assembly in terms of determining allocations to each county assembly. They have already done so in a two day meeting, and their proposal will come officially. This year the amount of money that is available for sharing out between the assembly and the county executive is Kshs45 billion for new administrative structures. Last year, it was Kshs30 billion. Out of the Kshs30 billion, a sum of Kshs17 billion went to county assemblies and Kshs13 billion went to the executive. This year the amount is Kshs45 billion and already the figures that the CRA is looking at is up from Kshs17 to 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."
}