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{
    "id": 800745,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/800745/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 305,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "June 6, 2018 SENATE DEBATES 45 Sen. Cherargei",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker. I rise to support and want to make a few comments. I would wish all my colleagues to speak to these issues so that we can move together. I have seen the additional conditional grants that have been made in line with the Big Four Agenda pillars of the President. One of the biggest impediments is the pending bills of around Kshs90 billion that most counties owe to contractors. Going forward, the main call from all Senators is to ensure that there is prudent and proper accountability of the resources that we work hard to ensure our counties get. For the last five years the issue of pending bills of Kshs90 billion is one of the bottlenecks that has delayed the entire process of ensuring that our counties move forward. I agree that the Agricultural Sector Development support Programme is in line with one of the Big Four Agenda of the President on food security. Therefore, this is welcome, noting that some of us come from agricultural areas of Nandi County and the North Rift, which literally feed this nation. It will ensure that we have additional funds through conditional grants. We will ensure that our farmers have the necessary support in terms of farm implements and subsidies, so that they produce more. I agree that the Food Security Bill that we have in this House will go a long way in ensuring that they go forward. Madam Temporary Speaker, the agricultural subsector development support programme is very important. I know that counties play a critical role because most of these functions have been devolved. As we speak, the agricultural sector is faced with a lot of challenges. I am happy that the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries today invited the Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Hon. Mwangi Kiunjuri, to shed light on the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) fiasco. Madam Temporary Speaker, going forward, this is important because it will ensure that the issue of food security is taken seriously by increasing resources. However, even as we increase resources that will support the agricultural sector in this country, especially in the regions that depend on agriculture, we should also protect these resources from being stolen. We should increase resources that will benefit our farmers. We should not be seeing the scenes that we are seeing now, with the circus of the National Youth Service (NYS), the NCPB, among other scandals. We are not interested in looking at people who are displaying tattoos or applying lipstick in courts of law. We should make sure that the money allocated is used prudently. We should not increase money for the agricultural sector and then, at the end of the day, we have other scandals. Madam Temporary Speaker, I am cognizant of the fact that the first scandal to have ever happened in this country was a maize scandal that happened in 1965. Therefore, we are not interested in hearing about more scandals and I hope this is the last one. Even as we increase resources to the agricultural sector, we should ensure that we protect and guard them jealously so that our farmers can benefit. This is because we want to make the agricultural sector more attractive. Where I come from, the average age of a farmer is 60 years. Many young people are unemployed and they do not have opportunities. How do we make the agricultural sector more attractive if we do not create more resources? As we wait for the President to implement the issue of food security, we 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."
}