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{
    "id": 541246,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/541246/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 64,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Ms.) Abdalla",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 382,
        "legal_name": "Amina Ali Abdalla",
        "slug": "amina-abdalla"
    },
    "content": "Clauses 20(b) and 20(c). Here, the Senate’s amendment proposes to reduce the numbers of persons appointed by the Cabinet Secretary (CS) under Section 31(f) from two to one member and replacing the one member with a representative of the CoG. Again, the Public Complaints Committee is a national Government function that is undertaken by a national Government institution working on a stated role given to it by the Constitution. So, for the Senate to propose a representative of CoG, this is opening another Pandora’s box that will in essence be going against the Fourth Schedule. We again reject the Senate’s amendments on Clause 23 which reduces the time required to develop a National Environmental Action Plan from three to two years after the commencement of this Act and further reduce the planning period from six to three years. Based on experience, Kenya had the responsibility in the current Environmental Management and Coordination (EMCA) Act to produce a state of the environment report annually. This has been found to be unrealistic because changes in the environment do not happen annually. As such, based on the fact that experience has shown that it is unrealistic to have short plans and quick reports, we had expanded that time. We also wish to reject a similar amendment on Clause 25 which also reduces the time in which a county’s plan can be produced and a county’s report on the state of the environment can be produced. The justification is the same with that one of Clause 23 that it is unrealistic to expect changes to occur in the environment in such a short notice. Maybe Members of the Senate looked at these years as an issue to merely do with a timeline. However, when you look at the actual work required to produce a National Environmental Action Plan, it has to take into account inputs from the 47 counties. It has to take into account what has been achieved in the previous planning period to build to the next one. Therefore, it is not an issue of reducing mere periods of time but one of appreciating the work required to produce these documents. We believe that the Senate might not have taken the issues that are raised into serious consideration. On Clause 40, the Committee agrees with the Senate on the amendment because we appreciate that the making of regulations and issuance of guidelines is a function of the Cabinet Secretary. In these amendments that we have agreed or disagreed with the Senate, the killer disagreement is on the issue of having representation of the CoG in these two national bodies. We will end up having the CoG wanting to be in any institution. They will tell us they want a representative in the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (KEMSA) Act the next time we are reviewing the KEMSA Act. They will do the same if we are amending any other Act. So, based on the fact that policy development remains the role of the national Government, national Government institutions responsible for policy formulation should not be tied to having representation by the CoG even in fully devolved functions such as health. The Cabinet Secretaries should be given a free hand to choose individuals with the best possible qualifications to represent in the same. I wish to request hon. Kenta to second."
}