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{
    "id": 776970,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/776970/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 253,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
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    "speaker": null,
    "content": "This Commission is supposed to make Parliament to function. For it to function, the membership must be properly facilitated. In fact, if you look at the national budget, the National Assembly has its own vote head, while the Senate is under the Parliamentary Service Commission. It is a unit within the Parliamentary Service Commission. It is time we separated the two to have a vote head that is equal to that of the National Assembly, so that the joint services under the Parliamentary Service Commission can be budgeted for separately from the Senate. Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is true that commissions are of equal status. The Parliamentary Service Commission is not less important than other independent commissions in Kenya. It supports the membership and staff of both Houses, so that they function properly. For them to function properly, they must be properly facilitated in terms of salaries and welfare. In regards to the Senate, some Senators, for example, the Senator for Nairobi County represent 17 constituencies. The majority of us have six constituencies. Even when office facilities were provided way back, they were usurped by our colleagues in the National Assembly. Ideally, they have offices in the constituencies under the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF). Going forward, it is important to facilitate and support those offices better so that we can do our job. Mr. Speaker, Sir, there is talk about per capita. In the Committee on Finance and Budget, we have proposed, in the Budget Policy Statement (BPS), some funding for the Senate, including oversight money and other things that need to up-scale the Vote 2041 which we have now. Those who have been nominated to serve in the Parliamentary Service Commission should work for the Senate, so that it functions properly and performs its role effectively. We do not want to be a junior House to the National Assembly. The Constitution gives us equal powers and more than that, we cover a wider area, our numbers notwithstanding. There is a reason there are 67 Senators and 349 Members of the National Assembly. All over the world, the Senate or the Upper House has fewer Members than the House of Representatives. Therefore, it is not an accident that in Kenya the Senators are fewer than the Members the National Assembly. Being few does not mean that we do less work than them. With those few remarks, I support and wish my colleagues the best. I know that they can do the job."
}