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{
    "id": 591482,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/591482/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 205,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Okong’o",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 948,
        "legal_name": "Kennedy Mong'are Okong'o",
        "slug": "kennedy-mongare-okongo"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker. I was almost tempted to speak in Kiswahili, but once the Senator of Kwale County has spoken, I will not be doing justice to the Kiswahili language. From the onset, let me take this opportunity to commend the team which put this Report to embark on this very gigantic task. Where there is a will, there is always a way. Since we came to this Senate almost two and a half years ago, we have been faced with challenges. Our role has been to defend devolution. We have tried effectively to do that without the necessary instruments. Madam Temporary Speaker, problems emanated from how we were composed. The problem with the Constitution 2010 was copy and paste. Today we have a Constitution which was overwhelmingly supported by Kenyans. This Constitution is 80 per cent perfect. We told Kenyans that in the subsequent years, we will have to panel beat the 20 per cent to have a perfect and progressive Constitution. The welfare of Senators and Members of the National Assembly is taken care of by the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC). That was a very big mistake. We ceded one position as a Senate that since we are few, we do not need to have enough equal number of commissioners. It was an oversight because it was not put anywhere in the Constitution. Madam Temporary Speaker, Sen. Boy Juma Boy mentioned that we do not have to talk about the past. We have to think of history so that we focus on the future. Most of the senior Senators in this House contributed in diluting the powers of the Senate. I have been on record on saying that. They went to Naivasha and diluted the powers, but now they have realised that the only pillar of devolution is the Senate. Unanimously, we need to embark on this road which is tedious, but we have the will to move forward. These recommendations require a referendum. We need to do a lot of outreach to the Kenyans who regard us as their defenders in terms of effectively fighting for devolution. I got surprised two years ago when we had a meeting with the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC). She mentioned that she does not know the role of the 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."
}