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{
    "id": 609895,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/609895/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 47,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "We know that parliaments have sovereignty in making laws. They have the freedom to enact whatever they want. However, that is subject to the Constitution. The process that they use must be subject to the Constitution. The Constitution defines the values that will guide them. Those are the values that we have just read in Chapter Six. Therefore, our colleagues should not have done what they did. Without any fear of contradiction, I am convinced that they engaged in an act of malice in terms of determining how much resources are allocated to the Senate. None of these institutions, the Senate, the SRC or the Judiciary has been accused of misusing resources. They are simply dealing with oversight. There is no report whatsoever that they are taking this action because the Judiciary failed to utilize money or the Judiciary was involved in the misuse of resources. They did not cite any of these reasons. The reasons cited are that let us punish these people because they passed a ruling that CDF is illegal. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I want to turn to the Executive; in particular, to the Treasury. With all due respect, this is a big let down. I belong to the ruling party, but I want to go on record that I think Treasury is a total disappointment. This is because Treasury has abdicated its mandate of making budgets. I want to refer to a ruling by hon. Marende in 2011 when he gave a ruling that Treasury can decline the Budget Committee or the House’s recommendation in budgetary allocation. In other words, they are not compelled to implement. Where do we see a Treasury that simply gives the budget responsibility to some committee Members of a House who sit down and determine where money goes and yet they are the executive in power? The committee can recommend, but Treasury is not compelled. The reason I am really concerned is that in recent years, budget making process has been taken over by this Committee. They have literally abdicated their responsibility. Treasury should explain on the basis of what is their priority. This is why sectors in this country that actually deserve priority financing are today suffering. The Government’s own flagship projects that should have been funded years ago, today some of them have not kicked off. This is because resources are not being given on priority basis to those areas of national development that Kenyans have identified as priorities. Resources are being allocated on the basis of political patronage and influence. I thought we left those things when we got the new Constitution. Really, we thought this thing about political patronage had gone. I want to know, for example, some of these Members of National Assembly come from my area, but they need to find out in that Budget, that apart from the Kshs258 billion which goes to the counties, do they ever sit down to find out whether there is equitable distribution of that national budget resources across the counties? That is one of the mandates they are supposed to look at. Mr. Speaker, Sir, for the last two years I have been in this House, I cannot tell you how much money has gone into Mandera County from the national Government, except the salaries of police, Administration Police officers (APs), the army and the teachers. As I speak, the teachers are not being paid. All the untrained teachers are hired and paid by my county Government. It is a pity that somebody can sit in that House and approve a national budget of Kshs2.1 trillion without auditing to see whether the areas of national priority have been properly funded and whether there is equitable distribution of that budget. The only thing he looks at is who has undermined their influence. 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."
}