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{
    "id": 811238,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/811238/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 23,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Dr.) Mwaura",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13129,
        "legal_name": "Isaac Maigua Mwaura",
        "slug": "isaac-mwaura"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, I rise to concur with the statement issued by the Senator for Vihiga County that it is important for that road to be carpeted. I assure him that the Jubilee administration is not discriminatory. The Jubilee administration gives development to each and every corner of this country. I am sure that the distinguished Senator for Vihiga County will agree with me that no other administration has been able to do the kind of projects that we have done without looking at the voting patterns. Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the same vein, if you look at the Kakamega-Kisumu Road, which passes through the same area, it has opened up that area. It is evident that if this road was to be tarmacked, it would spur economic growth. This is an area that has got rich agricultural potential, especially Mudete. This is an area that will also spur various job opportunities. Vihiga is a very strategic county because of even the granite production. This is something that would bring a lot of money, yet there are problems there because the middlemen come in between and swindle the local miners and producers of the raw materials. Part of the reason is accessibility of roads. Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the same vein, as I conclude, we need to look at the cost of construction of a road per kilometre. The costs continue to escalate and a good example is the Dongo Kundu Road; an 11 kilometres stretch that will cost Kshs10 billion. Is that really feasible? Does it mean that construction of one kilometre costs Kshs1 billion? We have to look at how we cost these roads. Some of the roads are constructed today and then tomorrow, you will find potholes. We have people who are doing very substandard and shoddy jobs. I went through the Ndumbuini-Waiyaki Way Road and was surprised that the road, which was tarmacked two years ago, is now full of potholes. We are giving Kenyans a raw deal. Just recently, we saw some people contracted by the Governor of Nairobi County repairing roads. Let us not cheat Kenyans when constructing roads. Some tarmac is put to hoodwink the people and then the road is painted in yellow and white colours. We need to build roads to last; not build to repair, so that next time you have a road maintenance contract. In this way, we will save for the future generations. However, road construction in this country has become a big time business for big cowboys and cowgirls, in the interest of gender equality, and we need to challenge that. However, I 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."
}