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{
    "id": 734090,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/734090/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 191,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Prof.) Anyang’-Nyong’o",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 193,
        "legal_name": "Peter Anyang' Nyong'o",
        "slug": "peter-nyongo"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker. I do not think I will use all the 30 minutes because I had substantially covered the presentation of the report. When we adjourned last time, I was summarizing our recommendations of the report of these first ten counties that the County Public Accounts and Investment Committee (CPAIC) has done. I reminded the House and the nation that these are just ten county executives and promised to table the report of other counties before this House adjourns S ine Die. One of the three final recommendations that we made is that the Office of the Auditor-General should take special audits on selected counties from time to time in order to promote the principles of public finance enshrined in the Constitution. One of the reasons we made that recommendation is because during the first year of devolution, counties had a lot of problems with managing public finance. Quite often, in both the counties and the assemblies, there was very poor understanding of the major laws that govern management of public finance. There was a very poor understating of the Public Finance Management (PFM) Act and the Public Audit Act. There was also very little appreciation of the fact the even the County Governments Act expects counties to be accountable to the people and the county assemblies to keep county governments accountable through similar committees that we have in this House. Madam Temporary Speaker, this learning curve of being respectful and filial to the laws of funds with regards to management of public finance is extremely important. Because of this laxity, we would like the Auditor-General to, from time to time, pick up a few counties and do special audits. This is because special audits allow the Auditor- General to go into deeper details about the management of a county. Governors being the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the counties, must at all times ensure that all offices and institutions under them exercise prudent financial management and controls in compliance with the tenets of the Constitution and relevant laws and regulations. Failure to do so, they shall be held liable. Madam Temporary Speaker, this is in line with the Constitution as well as in line with the PFM Act and the Public Audit Act. In the final analysis, when you are a CEO at whatever level of Government, you should make sure that under your tutelage, officers obey the law. Quite often, this responsibility does not mean that you are the one who bears the punishment when officers disobey the law. However, you must at least make them know and present them to the relevant authorities when procedures are abrogated or regulations ignored. We recently saw a case in Nyeri County where officers were penalized for not following procurement procedures. It is the person who is responsible for doing that, that bears responsibility. However, in the final analysis, the CEO must ensure that these 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"
}