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{
    "id": 667163,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/667163/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 616,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Nderitu",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2546,
        "legal_name": "Francis Waweru Nderitu",
        "slug": "francis-waweru-nderitu"
    },
    "content": "It is very bad to find a whole constituency like mine lacking tarmac roads. We passed the budget and said that every constituency should get 20 kilometres of roads, but it is very unfortunate. We have been following up with the Ministry, trying to ask whether our roads have been included in the current budget, but you always get a reason why the roads have not been included. You find that even the low volume roads which have been done have potholes even before they are finished. So, it is a very critical area and I think we need to go back and look at this Act critically, especially on the issue of standards. Yes the roads are being done but, if they will be done today and within a period of one year they are eroded and are full of potholes, we will go back to a situation where people will say it is better for them to have a proper murram road than the tarmac roads. This is a critical area that we need to look at. Another issue is that of acquisition of land for roads. This has been an issue. I sit in the Departmental Committee on Lands and we have been having issues. We deal with cases where the Government takes people‟s land and constructs roads before compensation has been done. An example is what happened along Galleria area. It is very clear in our Constitution that if the Government acquires your land, it has to do prompt and fair payment. However, some government bodies take the land and do their work before the process of compensation is complete. I know a road in my constituency in a place called Kariki. The Kenya Wildlife Service acquired some land to build a road almost 20 years ago. I have been following up compensation for those members of my constituency, but I have not been able to get it. So, I want Government officers to be very serious. When they acquire land, they should follow the right process. We have the National Land Commission (NLC), which is the acquiring body but, sometimes, you find the acquiring ministry wants to go behind and acquire the land itself and then go to NLC. This should go in the records that every agency, including the Ministries, should follow the proper channel when acquiring land so that proper analysis and valuation is done. If that is done, the right people will be paid fair amounts of compensation. The issue of roads is very emotive. Roads connect us to all the areas that we would like to visit. Most social activities depend on how accessible an area is. Most of our constituencies are not connected to the main towns. You can find a big town that is a distance of 30 to 50 kilometres from the constituency headquarters and yet, you cannot access that major centre. If you want to access that major centre, you will be forced to go around your constituency. An example is Gwa Kungu Town in my constituency. It is merely 50 kilometers to Nanyuki."
}