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    "id": 727164,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/727164/?format=api",
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    "content": "As far as understanding the nascence of devolution, we cannot by dint of that fact excuse breach of law, neglect or any other act committed contrary to the prescribed law of the land. Therefore, we are held responsible for making appropriate recommendations to that effect. Let me just go through certain general observations that this Committee made through all the reports of the ten counties that we have tabled today. However, this observation will apply to other counties mutatis mutandis because the cases are very similar. 1. Many counties did not cooperate with the office of the Auditor-General and the Committee in provision of documents in good time. Some counties completely withheld the provision of documents from the Committee, contrary to the Public Audit Act. Mr. Speaker, Sir, many counties are not aware of the importance of this act which requires counties to make sure that at the time of audit, they present documents to the Auditor-General without failure. We do realize that not long ago, we met with the Auditor-General and the other agencies of law enforcement and all government agencies including the Auditor-General emphasized this importance of availing information for audit which is one of the reasons why counties have internal audit departments to prepare proper books of account for auditing by the Auditor-General. 2. Recruitment of staff in certain counties was done haphazardly and I dare say, in many cases, rather “nepotistically”. The idea of trying to use counties as an employment bureau for friends, relatives and clansmen is something that is contrary to the Constitution and must be stopped. 3. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, most of the counties covered in this report allege not to have had technical capacity in terms of professional human resource during the period under review. Under the County Governments Act as well as the Constitution, the national Government is duty-bound to help counties in capacity building. From the Committee on Finance and Commerce, we are glad top report that the donor agencies have made funds available for capacity building and human resource development in counties. We shall discuss this when discussing the Division of Revenue Bill. This is especially after the first four years of devolution. In order for counties to perform well, not just in terms of financial management, capacity building and appropriate human resources development is vital. 4. Generally, the technical staff carrying out various duties during the Financial Year 2013/14 were not competent enough to perform their duties. 5. Most of the counties had excessive expenditure on foreign travel. This is a big area of hemorrhage in counties. It is something that county governments should develop internal discipline to ensure that it is not used as a way of rent- seeking. In Parliament there is very good control on foreign travel. Budgets are strictly adhered to. Reporting systems are there; when parliamentarians or committees go abroad they bring reports back to the Senate. Accountability has been established. However, in counties this does not seem to be the case. 6. Abuse and misuse of imprest. Untimely surrender of imprests and poor imprest management was a recurring issue in most counties. Imprests are 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"
}