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{
    "id": 812046,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/812046/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 136,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
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    "speaker": null,
    "content": "In some instances, we heard of public participation being a session in a hall. People attending it were paid transport and it was very difficult for them not to agree with the organizers. We know of instances where people were locked out because the room was full to capacity and in others, people were locked out because they were not invited for public participation exercise. That was not public participation. Public participation should allow access by any Kenyan who wants to participate and contribute. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to thank Sen. Wako for this Bill and for articulating it very well. When you look at the objects, he has given us an opportunity to allow the public to demonstrate their intellect because the Kenyan public is a very intelligent public. They know exactly what they want, how to organize themselves and prioritize their programmes. The major problem in terms of development in this country is prioritizing programmes. For example, when people are interested in provision of clean water, a road is prioritized for them. Others are interested in a road, but they are given a maternity hospital instead. This is because the decision is imposed on the people. Public participation will enable Kenyans to decide and prioritize their programmes. The other thing that will come out very well is transparency. It is only through public participation that our people will know how much money is actually available for them in the budget. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, with devolution, we cannot continue to make Kenyans believe money given to them belongs to somebody. For example, the CDF does not belong to a Member of Parliament, just the way the funds that have been devolved, do not belong to a governor or a Senator. They belong to the people. Therefore, they are the ones that should participate in deciding what projects should be prioritized. I personally appreciate the way the articulation of this law has come out because we now have a mechanism to get feedback. It is very important to involve people in decisions making so that they prioritize their projects. If that project is not contained in the CIDP, it will never see the light of day. A feedback mechanism will ensure that the public get to know what went in and what did not go in, after the Annual Development Plans have been released. The public will, therefore, be the first level of oversight as far as we are concerned. They will be able to do the monitoring and evaluation themselves. They know the projects that have been approved for a certain location. They know projects that are within their wards. By so doing, they will receive a feedback. This feedback mechanism will enable this Senate to receive reports so that we know how the money we allocate to counties is spent. As an institution that is supposed to be taking care of the interests of the county governments, it is very important that we know from the onset, how much money has been allocated and then periodically receive a report. Currently, the County Public Accounts and Investment Committee (CPAIC) does postmortem. They do it several years later. If we continue doing so, we will never be able to contain any corruption which takes place. It is so good that this Bill will provide for a reporting mechanism, not only for the public, but to all of us. We will know exactly how we are progressing. 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."
}