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"id": 722237,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/722237/?format=api",
"text_counter": 220,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "February 23, 2017 SENATE DEBATES 32 Sen. Kagwe",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to this very important subject. From the onset, I support. I am aware that tomorrow, Senators are supposed to retreat to Naivasha to discuss this subject. As they debate it, it is very important for the Senators to be informed of the issues that have arisen from it, particularly the hidden issues as Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale would call them. First is the growth expected or as proposed in the budget. The National Assembly has proposed some Kshs291 billion or thereabout which, if you compare to last year’s allocation, it is a growth of about 3.2 per cent. Between the 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 financial years, the growth of revenue allocated to the counties was 7.9 per cent. This year, it is 3.2 per cent. This tells you that we have not even managed to cover for inflation. Estimating inflation between 3 and 5 per cent, if we allocate money to the tune of 3.2 per cent with a growth of 3.2 per cent effectively, we are allocating less money this year than we did last year. This is so because an allocation that does not cover for inflation is essentially diluted. That is the first thing to note. Another aspect of it is that in the schedule that is proposed in the Bill, there is item No.4 called conditional allocations, loans and grants of about Kshs12 billion. That has been used to arrive at the Kshs323,757,000,000 which then grows the allocation to 34.6 per cent. Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is important for us to appreciate that the Kshs12.5 billion is not money that is going to the counties at all as has been explained by the note here. It is money that is neither going to the counties nor even going to be managed by the counties. This is money purely managed by the national governments that deal with international commitments, loans and grants from foreign governments and institutions. There is no logical reason why that figure of Kshs12.5 billion should be anywhere in this table. On the contrary, it should have been allocated in item (b) which is national governments funding. I would like to commend the Commission of Revenue Allocation (CRA). This year round they really thought about the recommendations. It appears to me that what we or the National Assembly should have done is simply accept the figure as presented by the CRA. Their arguments are so solid. The argument presented for the reduction of their amounts does not make sense. So, the amounts proposed by the CRA; given the growth aspect in the country in terms of Government growth in revenue, expected inflation, allocation of responsibilities to the county governments, was something to the tune of Kshs331 billion as opposed to the Kshs291 billion. That amount would cater for, (a) inflation and (b) some real growth. If you look at the areas that the CRA had proposed, for instance, they had proposed a 25 per cent portion from the roads maintenance levy fund to be given to the counties. The Division of Revenue Bill as it stands today proposes 15 per cent allocation yet we are talking about a recorded 32,000 kilometres of roads transferred from the national to the county governments. Therefore, there is very logical reason why the 25 per cent, equivalent to Kshs13.3 billion should be allocated to the county governments. It is very clear. It makes sense. What does not make sense is the logic behind the reduction from the 25 per cent. This is money that is coming directly from a levy that is paid for by county drivers. Therefore, it is not an amount that we can say, strictly speaking, coming from the national 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"
}