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{
    "id": 787918,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/787918/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 563,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr.",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13156,
        "legal_name": "Mutula Kilonzo Jnr",
        "slug": "mutula-kilonzo-jnr"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker. I rise to support this Bill. At the onset, just from reading the Bill and its explanations, I want to say that under the Constitution, the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) is supposed to give recommendations on this Bill and the Treasury in a memorandum that is appended to the Bill and give reasons for deviations. I am not happy as a Member of the Standing Committee on Finance and Budget, having sat on the Committee for several years about the explanations on the deviations. The first explanation of the 4 per cent growth factor is something we have disputed. Our Report to the Senate through the Budget Policy Statement (BPS) is available. In fact, this growth factor is not the correct one. The correct one is 7.1 per cent that is rounded off to 7 per cent. There is no logical and economical explanation for this growth factor of 4 per cent. Madam Temporary Speaker, we have tabled documents to show that this 4per cent growth factor is picked from the constant Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) rate as a result of the interest rate cap. Therefore, if you consider fuel and food prices and others, you can only be at 7 per cent. That deviation has only been done through a political arrangement. In the opening statement by the Majority Leader of Senate, he said that one of the most fundamental reasons, in fact, may be the only one that keeps this Senate is this Division of Revenue Bill. If we are not careful from what I am gathering, we will become either a rubber stamp or a conveyer belt for decisions made in other places other than this Senate. Why do I say so? The Council of County Governors (CoG) tabled a Report in our Committee. In the Report they said: “We have no objection to the baseline of Kshs302 billion and the adjustment of 4 per cent, we have cut a deal and that is what we are going to do.” That means that through the Committee chaired by the Deputy President called the Inter-Governmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) the CoG will negotiate for this allocation from this year, next year and any other year then circumvent the Senate. Unless we challenge some of these things, the purpose of going to the Supreme Court does not make sense. That growth factor as far as I am concerned, is not justifiable. In the explanations the CRA has given in its recommendations, there must be justification. If we give CRA that role, then it is their recommendation that we ought to consider. On the allocation of leasing of medical equipment for counties, in the last Division of Revenue Bill, we allocated Kshs4.5 billion. How Treasury has adjusted to Kshs6.9 billion for 2017/2018 and Ksh9.4 billion for this Financial Year has no explanation. Why the increase of 100 per cent for leasing? Where is this equipment and did we buy more equipment than what we purchased? Which counties are going to get this extra equipment for these two health facilities in each county? When was this negotiated? We once had a dispute with the Ministry of Health and the Cabinet Secretary, (CS) Mailu at the time told us that he exercised this function on behalf of the counties but 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."
}