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{
    "id": 548318,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/548318/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 298,
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    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Remuneration Commission. Madam Sarah Serem was actually reported at one time to say that she does not know the work of Senators. Surely, if she does not know the work of Senators, how possibly would she be able to comprehend the kind of facilitation that a Senator would require to discharge his duties effectively? We would like them to meet the Parliamentary Service Commission and sort out, once and for all, the issue of the budget of the county office. If constituency offices have got Constituencies Development Fund (CDF) Land Rovers, how can a county office not have a similar vehicle, unless you do not want us to function? In fact, if we are really committed to this, a county like Marsabit should have a helicopter or facilitated to have helicopter facilities. This is because moving in that vast area is unbelievable. So that it does not appear like Kakamega does not have similar challenges, from the county headquarters in Kakamega to Likuyani, the furthest part of the county on the northern end, I do 120 kilometres. To go to Luanda Doho, near Siaya Town, from Kakamega Town, I have to do another 100 kilometers. It is not a joke. So, we need to be realistic and have this Senate Services Committee sort us out. Madam Temporary Speaker, very recently, I had the honour and privilege to hold a candid discussion with one of the few performing governors in this country. He opened up to me because this was a candid discussion amongst senior leaders of the country, who have gone to school properly. He opened up and told me that he regrets – and he was saying it on behalf of many other governors – the amount of time and money they have wasted in courts, hiring lawyers on issues which it has now become apparent that had they just bonded well with the Senators, those issues would have been sorted out by this particular Senate. On the other hand, I also opened up to him and told him that I am sending out a delegation of the County Public Accounts and Investments Committee to Nigeria to see how that country dealt with the first generation governors on the kind of challenges that we are seeing today; the same opulence, abuse of power and privilege and impunity that we are seeing today was also experienced by Nigerians from the first generation governors. I want to see how they dealt with this problem through this delegation that I am sending from my committee. I believe that it will be ably led by my Vice Chair. We can see how Nigerians dealt with it because we read that many governors lost re-election, others were surcharged and others went to jail. I will feel a lot of pain to have any of our governors go to jail. I will equally feel pain if they have to be surcharged when they can avoid pain. I will equally feel pain if they lose, unless, of course, they lose to one or two of my colleagues here. If I heard that an underperforming governor like Governor Kabogo lost to Sen. Wamatangi, I will be the happiest man because the man has refused to honour summons to come to this Senate, and there is another one called Governor Mutua. I was there the other day and a Mkamba man has coined a very good song called “ mundu wa cinema” . The song is very popular in pubs there. I usually sit in pubs across the Republic, so when I was enjoying my beer, I could not help enjoying the song. Madam Temporary Speaker, with those many remarks, I want to thank you for giving me this chance. I support this amendment Bill. 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."
}