{"id":635292,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/635292/?format=json","text_counter":287,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"into this House appreciates that, indeed, within the context of our mandate under Article 96, this House can truly hold governors to account. That is our duty. We are soon voting for more money to go to the counties. We have a duty to ensure that money is put to good use for the benefit of the people of Kenya. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I also acknowledge the bipartisan manner in which we have approached the reconstitution of this Committee. We had ran into a quagmire with the possibility of reaching a stalemate and, therefore, paralyzing the oversight work of the Committee. Once we approve this Motion, I urge the Committee to get down to business, elect its leadership and continue with examining the reports of the Auditor- General so that we can hold those who are entrusted with administering public funds to account. We are seeing all manner of things going on and as we hold people to account, sometimes you cannot help being unhappy with what you see. Instead of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) arresting a governor and charging him with corruption; they arrest him and charge him with obstruction. EACC is a body set up to fight corruption; not to deal with obstructions. Obstructions are the work of the police. If the Governor for Murang’a obstructed the EACC from doing their work; the correct procedure is for them to report to the police to arrest him and prosecute him for obstruction. However, it makes it look succinctly clear what PLO Lumumba said, that when he was appointed to head the EACC, he thought he was being appointed to fight corruption. He later realised that he had actually been appointed to appear to fight corruption but not to fight corruption. That is what we are faced with. Those diversionary high profile empty looking activities like arresting a governor in hospital – I thought they were arresting him because they had now fingered him on corruption; only to tell the country that they have arrested him for obstruction. That brings us back to the House. It is only this House through this Committee that can dig into what is going on in the counties and bring it to the fore. The Committee on Implementation chaired by Sen. Orengo can routinely and regularly hold institutions that are supposed to implement our recommendations to account. Otherwise, we shall spend-like we spent-two hours talking about how governors want to hijack important public organs and organisations like the devolution conference and make it look it is like a showcase on what they have done even when they have done nothing. They will be there displaying obscenities and grandeur; very grandiose behaviour like what we saw in Kisumu. The governor had more than 15 billboards of himself in one town showing what he has done and yet he has done nothing. I visited another county. At every turn, there is picture of a governor showing what he had launched. One was showing him launching a nursery school, commissioning a borehole and so on, with a full picture. I want this Committee to find out whether the money being used on those billboards has been budgeted for and approved by the county assemblies. I do not think any of the governors was elected to put up about 100 billboards of himself in the county. It is disheartening. This is a matter that is not contentious, therefore, I beg second. I urge the Members to approve the list so that we get down to work. 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."}