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{
    "id": 579121,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/579121/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 202,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Shidiye",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2070,
        "legal_name": "Mohamed Muktar Shidiye",
        "slug": "mohamed-muktar-shidiye"
    },
    "content": "Thank you for giving me this opportunity, Hon. Deputy Speaker. From the outset, I want to support the Finance Bill. It is one of the key pillars in our governance. If the Government of Kenya wants to improve the livelihoods of the people, it is very important we look at the macro and micro economies of this country. It is important to have a lean Government so that you do not overburden the taxpayer. We have a huge wage bill that the Kenya Government pays. Currently, we have almost three or four structures. We have the national Government, the county governments and the remnants of the former county and municipal councils. We end up paying a lot of money to all these workers. Ultimately, the work of the Government is to make sure that we reduce poverty and Kenyans lead a better life. If you look at debt payment in this country, you will find that we have a debt of about 47 per cent. That percentage is very high and it is ever increasing with the maturity of the new railway we are building, other legacy projects and annuity programme. All that means we are going to be more indebted locally and internationally. It means that the future generation of this country will be affected. It is more expensive when the Government borrows locally. It is equally expensive when we borrow from outside. For this country to be stable, it is important we borrow what we can pay. When you over borrow, you overburden the taxpayer, particularly the future generation. Borrowing is not bad but, when you over borrow and there are a lot of interests and strings attached, you end up overburdening the taxpayer. So, it is very important that we manage our debt by borrowing less and being creative and innovative in terms of helping the people of Kenya. The other issue concerns corruption in this country. The President has been on the forefront in fighting corruption. We already have the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) in place. This culture of corruption must be fought by all and sundry. We should not take it for granted that things are going to be easy in this country when we have this culture. Countries which have moved have been fighting corruption. At Independence, Kenya was at par with Malaysia, Singapore and many other countries but, today, look at how our country is far behind because of corruption. Look at what is happening at the Kenya Airways Limited (KQ). If the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the KQ was in China, he would have been shot dead. The legacy of any person who heads a corporation is when he leaves. We saw the case of Mumias Sugar Company, the KQ and other cases. These organisations were vibrant but when the CEOs left, they left behind trails of disasters, debts, unpaid bills and corruption. We from the pastoral areas have not been benefitting from bailouts. For instance, we have the Kenya Meat Commission (KMC) which is the only institution to which pastoralists sell their animals. Today, it is at an all-time low with no money in its accounts. It is bankrupt. However, when Mumias Sugar Company has problems, the entire Government machinery goes to Mumias. The Company has been paid Kshs1 billion and people are still making noise. You need large-scale farming to grow sugar. Uganda produces about 350 million metric tonnes of sugar in a year while Kenya produces 500,000 metric tonnes. We have a deficit of The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}