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{
    "id": 619188,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/619188/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 392,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Mulu",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1955,
        "legal_name": "Benson Makali Mulu",
        "slug": "benson-makali-mulu"
    },
    "content": "beating a dead donkey, it is very disappointing. Kenyans must be very disappointed when they hear that this House is discussing reports like this. As we move forward, this Report has captured the issue of irregular payment of allowances. You are paid an allowance, and yet you are not entitled to that allowance. That is why I like the recommendation that states that in such a case, people must take individual responsibility. If it is written that it is Hon. Makali Mulu who was paid that irregular allowance, the Government has no choice but to make sure that the money is refunded. All the three arms of Government must recover that money so that people get value for their money. Hon. Speaker, any report by the PAC that I have read talks about irregular imprest every year. This is the case and yet there are clear regulations on how imprest should be taken and surrendered. I always wonder, in a situation where people get irregular imprest, what stops the accounting authority from recovering it. People earn salaries and other allowances that can be used to recover that. This is an area, as a House, we need to tighten even if it means changing some regulations. There are loose ends and we need to tighten them so that public money can be safeguarded in future. This means that you can withdraw money from this account, the money is transferred to another account and you withdraw money from another account. This is one of the easiest ways of making sure that money is taken from Government system through corrupt means. It is also not very clear how the Controller and Auditor-General could not pick some of these things that this Report has picked. We are aware that the Controller and Auditor-General had backlog in terms of preparing audit reports in the past. I am happy that we are now discussing this Report and these are timely reports. If they are in arrears, it may be in a year or two. The idea of making sure that audits are done at the end of the financial year and within six or seven months is to help this country. We should stop looking into issues that took place five years ago. We will not achieve much in cases where people retired fives years ago and yet their names are appearing in these reports. Even if we recommend that the money be recovered, you will find that the officers have already been paid their terminal benefits in lump sum and are on pension. I saw an officer who had misappropriated about Kshs106 million. If the report recommends that we recover the money and the officer has retired, that person will die within the next one year and a dead person cannot repay debts. This country will keep on losing money. It is important that immediately it is found that these officers have misappropriated funds, they are kicked out of public offices and we can recover the money from their assets or whatever money they have in banks. That way, we will be helping this country. Just to emphasise my point, we need to give special reports first priority so that they are discussed and the country benefits from the recommendations. With those remarks, thank you very much for giving me the chance."
}