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{
    "id": 646020,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/646020/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 180,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Kenyans spoke about the new formula. We found that Kenyans always follow what takes place in Parliament. Almost a month ago, a Kenyan from Kakamega came up with his own formula and tabled it in the Committee. We discussed about it, engaged him and we were ready to accept it. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I support the sentiments of the Senate Majority Leader that our Constitution requires some amendment. I remember the humiliation that we went through during the division of revenue formula in the first year of the Senate. It resulted in the Senate going to the court, and we know what came out of it. We now know that for this country to get onto the right track, we need to come up with a new Constitution, which will strengthen the Senate, so that whatever is done in the Senate shall never be by-passed by another House. Devolution came so that the areas that felt marginalized and had been left out in terms of development for 40 or 50 years since Independence could be uplifted. Those who came up with the first formula, which we are correcting by coming up with the second formula, wanted to make sure that funds reached those areas that felt left out, so that they could offer good services to the residents. There was a body that was created to be in charge of the implementation of the Constitution and also the Transition Authority (TA). I think the TA did not perform as was expected. Its focus should have been on the areas which never used to receive billions of money. The impact should have been forecast, so that the menace of corruption and putting up of white elephant projects could not arise. Through the old formula, a lot of funds have gone to the counties which never used to receive enough allocation. Turkana County got Kshs12 billion; Mandera and Wajir Counties got over Kshs10 billion. On top of that, the Constitution states that there should be an Equalization Fund to cater for the same counties. However, despite that allocation, governors came up with projects that do have a direct impact on the citizens. There are counties which have built big hotels and headquarters, as if those are the things that people were missing. The truth is that people were missing health facilities, good roads and water. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I happened to interact with the Prime Minister of Algeria. He told me that he was elected as the Prime Minister because, once he served as a Minister for Water Resources, he made sure that the entire country had water through the construction of many dams, drilling of many boreholes and harvesting of rain water. The ordinary people of Algeria ended up getting enough water. These governors from the pastoralist counties should have ensured that the herders and animals have enough water. Instead, we hear that those counties have five-star hotels and are constructing airports and many other things that have no direct relation to the wananchi. It beats the purpose of devolution. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, that is why corruption has found its place there. I have mentioned areas which had never seen money of that kind yet people are still suffering in such areas where they have no roads or networks for communication. That is why you will find that almost all employees of the counties drive 4x4 vehicles and are concentrated in the urban areas. The billions of shillings that are taken to counties are not just supposed to be spent at the county headquarters. Such monies shoould be distributed 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"
}