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"speaker_name": "Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr.",
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"content": "Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, that is a reference given to me by my colleagues. I have never denied the title of Duke. Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I rise to support the Assumption of Office of the County Governor Bill (Senate Bill No. 1 of 2018), and congratulate Sen. Kimani Paul Wamatangi for this Bill. Unfortunately for us, this is a Bill that we discussed and debated at length during the last Session. My colleague, Sen. Wamatangi, was like a prophet or a seer. The handover ceremonies that were done after the last General Elections were a sham, full of drama like a circus and a soap opera. For example, in the County Government of Kitui, the outgoing Governor decided not to attend the ceremony, while the outgoing Governor of Nairobi decided to come with books, and we do not know what books they were. The outgoing County Governor of Kiambu, where Sen. Wamatangi comes from, refused to attend altogether. Others handed over flags while others handed over many contraptions and other things. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, immediately after we passed this Bill in the Senate and it was transmitted to the National Assembly before the general elections, the then Cabinet Secretary in charge of the Ministry of Devolution and National Planning, hon. Mwangi Kiunjuri, followed up on this Bill and then, instead of this Bill being passed, he issued a circular. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, regarding the lacuna that my colleague, Sen. Wamatangi has pointed out, the rest of us have not even seen the hole that is going to be created if we do not have a legal framework. Twenty six Governors are going to leave office by virtue of law in a single election, because their second terms would have come to an end. Without a legal framework, we will have a tragedy. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, Gov. (Prof.) Anyang Nyong’o invited me to his county to speak to some of his County Executive Committee Members (CECs) on some laws regarding devolution. You will be surprised that in the County Government of Kisumu, there was no single paper that was handed over to Gov. (Prof.) Anyang Nyong’o. In another county, a generator was found in a private residence. Maybe several other things have not been found in many other counties. Unless we put in place a legislative framework that is compulsory and must be followed with penal sanctions to outgoing governors, counties will be mortgaged and auctioned and there will be no reports and nobody will fine the governors. I hope that the committee that will interrogate this Bill will look at the matters that Sen. Wamatangi has ably put in Clause 17 which provides that the county flag, the Constitution and the public Seal shall be handed over . What about a schedule of debts and assets and the number of staff that a county has? If we elect governors and call them Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of counties under Article 179, then they must behave like CEOs. We must demand that they hand over. Otherwise, assets of counties will disappear. I am happy that the Supreme Court has seen the wisdom of some of the provisions in Sen. Wamatangi’s Bill. This was manifested in the Supreme Court advisory opinion referenced Number 1 of 2015 to the Speaker of the County Assembly of Embu on the 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."
}