Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 67276,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/67276/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 235,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Mudavadi",
    "speaker_title": "The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 84,
        "legal_name": "Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi",
        "slug": "musalia-mudavadi"
    },
    "content": " Mr. Speaker, Sir, I will start with the issues raised by Mr. K. Kilonzo and I wish to state that, indeed, Kitui is one of the affected counties. It was an accidental omission in the Statement. So, I just want to correct that particular position and agree with him. I also want to state that the amount of money that has gone to the Ministry of State for Special Programmes of Kshs1.5 billion is just a portion of the resources that are really supposed to be set aside to deal with the drought crisis. The estimated cost of effectively dealing with the crisis is actually Kshs9 billion. That is why the team is working very closely with the Treasury to look at how they can marshal sufficient resources beyond the Kshs1.5 billion. Some Ministries which are affected like, for instance, the Ministry of Northern Kenya and Other Arid Lands has been able to reallocate within its resources up to about Kshs172 million and part of that money is now being used to help in the distribution of food and water. However, I do not have the exact figure in terms of how much has been set aside for the specific needs or water bowsers. I can undertake to inform the House about those details once the technical committee that is working on it can provide a more specific figure in that regard. But I have noted that with regard to seeds, we do not just deal with maize. We also have to deal with drought resistant crops which would do better in some of the arid and semi arid areas. Mr. Speaker, Sir, finally Mr. Bahari raised a very important matter regarding the school feeding programme and the delays that are being experienced in terms of the delivery of the food, either to the schools or to various institutions in some of these areas. I would like to admit here that it has taken much longer than earlier anticipated putting the logistics of all the military and NSY vehicles to assist in distribution of food. As I said, the Government has not abandoned the school feeding programme in these areas, but there has been a logistical problem which has been tackled effectively by the Crisis Response Centre (CRC). We shall see improvement because now, these vehicles will be deployed and fueled appropriately. The same issue in a way also would entail what Mr. Letimalo raised. The only difference is that he raised the issue of sending students away. This communication is important, so that the Ministry of Education can handle it effectively. I also want to state that the exact figure and the logistics of how the school fees will be dealt with must be dealt with in consultation with the Ministry of Education and Treasury, so that the genuinely needy students in these areas do benefit. We do not want a situation where there is no drought or crisis and then you find that they are finding their way into this particular scheme. It is something that needs to be worked out very carefully. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I want to state here that the issue of drought and the question of where people were supposed to be visited or not visited has nothing to do with the political party of the area MP. So, anybody saying that---"
}