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{
    "id": 515799,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/515799/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 94,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Wetangula",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Minority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 210,
        "legal_name": "Moses Masika Wetangula",
        "slug": "moses-wetangula"
    },
    "content": " Mr. Speaker, Sir, this is a very serious matter. In fact, I would wish that you even allocated time for this Chamber to debate this important issue. The Constitution has been grossly violated. Article 229(4) says:- “Within six months after the end of each financial year, the Auditor-General shall audit and report, in respect of that financial year, on – the accounts of the national and county governments.” We are now entering the third year of devolution, we have sent billions of shillings to the counties and there has been no audit. Nobody knows whether this money has been utilized in accordance with Article 229(6) which states as follows:- “An audited report shall confirm whether or not public money has been applied lawfully and in an effective way.” Mr. Speaker, Sir, every time the Controller of Budget and the Auditor-General appear before any of our committees, the cry is that his office is completely understaffed, under-funded and incapacitated in every way. The Controller of Budget and Auditor- General are even now under threat with the little that they hold on. The Bill that you have mentioned in the National Assembly is whittling down the independence and capacity of the office of the Controller of Budget and the Auditor-General. If the timelines are clearly set, this House, as an oversight agency – like as any other Parliament - has worked with the Controller of Budget and the Auditor-General as the principal agents of oversight. In the absence of that, we cannot quite tell what is going on in the counties. That is why in every county, governors are now creating a new office called “Director of Special Programmes,” who is being given public funds to play the politics of the governor; to run everywhere, doing everything and anything with public funds. It is good that you have come out clean and honest that you were not consulted on the Bill in the National Assembly. After you leave your Chair, we urge you to write a letter demanding that when that Bill is finalized by the National Assembly, it must be forwarded to us. It squarely concerns counties. Lastly, I think we also need a House that oversights because I understand there is an audit of the Constitution going on. We should look at this Constitution and see whether we are going back to the bad old days that Sen. Muthama is referring to, where all audits are done long after money has been stolen, misappropriated by people who have left the country. All we are told is that ten years ago, somebody misappropriated 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."
}