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{
    "id": 571035,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/571035/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 192,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "is also important, the county assembly while respecting the principle of separation of powers may exercise oversight over the County Executive Committee (CEC) and any other county executive organ. This article of the Constitution has been abused so blatantly. We must speak to it, underline, put it in bold on posters and remind county executives and county governments that the work of the county assembly is to exercise oversight. Madam Temporary Speaker, let me refer to Article 226(2) to fortify my argument about oversight so that we are understood why we need to do this by anybody who is listening or watching. Without belabouring the point and without looking at the current constitution of our assemblies, we must repeat what the Constitution says about what the drafters intended. Under Article 226(2), the accounting officer of the national public entity is accountable to the National Assembly for its financial management while the accounting officer of a county public entity is accountable to the county assembly. From the reports that we have received this financial year that have been tabled by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, if we were allowed to shed tears we would do so for our counties. The reason being, our money has been misused. All the work that we have put in as the Senate to ensure that counties are working, somebody has changed county funds to private funds. They have created all sorts of things and the practice of corruption and wizimashinani has continued because our county assemblies have not been empowered. Having educated MCAs is not the only empowerment that you can give to an assembly. That is not the solution. The solution just like the resolution to this Senate is to ensure that we are in control of the funds that we will deal with. That is the way to make the Senate a Senate so that then somebody who is sitting somewhere far away from where we are does not assume that they can decide for us. If somebody wants to interfere with the Senate, they will interfere with our funds and they have done so. While the Senate is passing this Bill, they must understand that if we want to impede the work that I have mentioned in the Constitution on accounting and oversight is to ensure that assemblies do not have independence the way the funds that are supposed to go into their own kitties are managed. If anybody had any concern, we tell them today the gospel according to the Senator for Makueni, that we have changed the law and that there is a ceiling on the Budget and that we are the ones to approve those budgets. Therefore, the sort of play that we saw in 2013/2014 where everybody was playing with county funds the way they felt like, I want to tell them that the only thing that is remaining now is for them to be sent to jail. The law is now in place. There will be no room to play around with county funds. Madam Temporary Speaker, we have now gone a step further to ensure that we anchor whatever it is that will strengthen our assemblies. We are looking at having assemblies in the next 20 years that are equivalent to the assemblies and county governments that we see in other republics where there is federation or devolution as in our case. We want this Senate to be a House of review. We do not want to deal with petty things about who stole money to buy a printer and who did not buy a printer or a toner. That should not be the work of Senators. We should be a House of review. The only way that that will happen is to ensure that assemblies do their work as expected. 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."
}