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{
    "id": 706811,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/706811/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 235,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Wandayi",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2960,
        "legal_name": "James Opiyo Wandayi",
        "slug": "james-opiyo-wandayi"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. Of course, I will wait for the clarification sought by Hon. Nyikal even though in my mind, that could come in the debate proper. I wish to start by stating that I oppose this Motion. I oppose it vehemently. The Committee on Delegated Legislation, to my understanding, has got the power to rectify, vary, or amend any regulations that come before it. It can also, of course, reject it in totality, but with sound reasons. The reasons being advanced by the Committee in rejecting these regulations do not satisfy me. We must understand the role of the Senate in the new constitutional dispensation. The Senate has got one key role. Apart from the role of impeaching governors once sent to them by county assemblies or impeaching the President once we initiate the process here, the Senate has only one other cardinal responsibility of protecting the counties and their governments. How does the Senate do this? I want to say also very clearly before I get to that that the Senate has got no role in overseeing the county Executives. That must be made very clear. There has been some confusion. That work belongs to county assemblies. In exercising their role of protecting the counties and their governments, how does the Senate effectively perform that function? In my view, the Senate needs to have a clear understanding of the workings of county governments on a day-to-day basis. How would they understand these workings if they have no capacity to visit these counties and interrogate their activities regularly if they are not facilitated? In my view, this House has a cardinal responsibility, because it is the only House that appropriates funds, to ensure that the Senate is facilitated properly to undertake its constitutional responsibility. The money they are asking for is small change. It is small change in the sense that this country is losing billions of shillings nearly on a daily basis through corruption sanctioned by the Executive and presided over by the Executive agents and the owners of the ruling parties. We need to reject this Motion and compel the Committee to go back and bring to us recommendations which will make it possible for the Senate to be properly financed and facilitated to undertake its responsibility of overseeing the happenings in the counties so that they are able to effectively protect the counties and their governments. That is what we are being asked to do. I do not want us to portray ourselves as people still steeped in sibling rivalry with the Senate. It will be myopic for us, as Members of the National Assembly, to view this matter as some form of contest between the National Assembly and the Senate. That will be very juvenile, allow me to say so. As legislators, we must legislate with posterity in mind. We cannot continue to legislate by looking at the immediate-term issues of who is superior to whom. That would be most unfortunate. It would be quite unfortunate. I respect the Committee’s Chairperson, a respected senior legal mind. I am sure this could not have been his idea, but he leads a Committee, whose ideas, he must abide by. I want to plead with him that once we reject this Motion, he goes back and pleads with his Committee to look at it afresh with more clear minds. It is pointless to legislate on the basis of what their interests are at the moment. I might be the Senator of Siaya tomorrow and I want to be able to discharge my duties and responsibilities effectively by being facilitated by the National Assembly. The question of the law they are citing as having been violated by this regulation which could be the Public Finance Management (PFM) Act is a non-issue. Any 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."
}