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{
    "id": 622933,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/622933/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 354,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Ndiritu",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1539,
        "legal_name": "Samuel Mathenge Ndiritu",
        "slug": "samuel-mathenge-ndiritu"
    },
    "content": "I stand guided. Thank you. Clause 13 provides that no officer shall hinder the Controller of Budget, or officers from that office, from doing their work. I find Clause 19 very lenient on the imprisonment of whoever impedes the Controller of Budget or officers from that office from carrying out their work. They can only be imprisoned for a term not exceeding two years. If one finds a judge who is lenient, they can get away with it. I know that in the legal profession the judge should be left to have his independence. One can easily commit the offence of hindering the Controller of Budget from doing his or her work and get away with it. We have been reviewing our quarterly reports from the ministries. Sometimes it is very difficult. Most of the remarks from the ministry officials are either non-disclosure of information or funds are not provided. That is not anybody’s mistake. We are probably over-budgeting. We have dockets like the Constituencies Development Fund (CDF) where we have major oversight. We receive funds about six months into the implementation of a budget. We could be over- budgeting or over-committing ourselves and yet we are supposed to oversee the first and the second financial quarters by the time we get to the next budget. Most ministries and Government departments by then may not have received their allocations. There are many problems with county revenues even in my county. The revenues being collected are lower than what the municipal councils used to collect. This means there is non- disclosure of what the county governments are raising. The Controller of Budget should stamp her foot and ensure that counties bank the revenue that they collect. I remember a case where a raid almost took place in one of the towns in my county. It was discovered that the county government was not banking even 10 per cent of what it was collecting. I know it is a long process before the Auditor-General gets to the matter, but this is a problem we have identified and it should be looked into. The monies that the county governments collect are not being remitted to the Consolidated Fund and yet we always hear governors requesting for more money. I would like the county governments to disclose the revenue they collect. Counties are now supposed to be managed by professional people. Governors are required to have a set of qualifications. That means they should have management skills. They should explain why they collect less revenue than what municipal councils used to collect. It is unrealistic. I support the Bill and emphasize that the clause that talks about strengthening the Office of the Controller of Budget, particularly the provision for the fine and imprisonment, should be improved. 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."
}