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{
    "id": 862281,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/862281/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 311,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Murkomen",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Majority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 440,
        "legal_name": "Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen",
        "slug": "kipchumba-murkomen"
    },
    "content": "level of public participation. The Chairperson of the Committee is here. I requested that further consultation takes place. That is the understanding I am moving this Bill. Secondly, I will be making a request to you as we did with the Energy Bill, the County Planning Roads, Pavements and Parking Bill, the Land Value Index Laws (Amendment) Bill, other Land Bills and the Petroleum Bill - I have full support of the Senate Minority Leader and, possibly many Senators. We should organize a breakfast on this issue. During this breakfast, all Senators will be taken through and explained why it was important to have a Bill in this form and not in any other form suggested by many different stakeholders. That will help because it is one thing to move a Bill and another to get it passed. We must have the collective decision of the House and the best interest of counties bearing in mind that this Bill, as proposed, will collapse existing pension schemes. This is the Local Authorities Provident Fund (LAP Fund) and the Local Authorities Pensions Trust (LAPTRUST) into one big pension scheme. However, there is a challenge to that. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, one of the challenges is the transferability of interest of members to the new scheme. It should be done in an orderly manner. I will be referring to the Bill. It talks about the fact that if you are five years to retirement, there is no need to transfer to the new scheme and so forth. These issues must be thrashed out. Secondly, is the amount of debt that is owed to the existing schemes is estimated by different studies to be about Kshs30 billion. That issue must be dealt with so that we do not have situations where the new entity inherits a debt collection assignment without having the history and the responsibility of who will pay. If you are collapsing two institutions to one, definitely, there will be consequences in so far as the staff and the management are concerned because the latter will change. The law here is proposing that you have a new board and so forth. Therefore, that responsibility will require careful consideration of this House, to ensure that we do not find ourselves in a situation where we will have to regret decisions we make. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am saying this because the lower House – a good House and it is our partner House, the Standing Orders say that we must always intend good positive things about the Lower House - their consideration and focus has always been on the national Government institutions. However, we have a unique responsibility in the Constitution to protect the interests of counties and their governments. Therefore, if there is anything that is going to disadvantage public officers who are going to be managed under this scheme, then that disadvantage that will accrue; the greatest responsibility will be borne by us. Many citizens and people of this country will be asking why the Senate did not do proper consultations. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am also aware that the Chairperson and the Committee are working further on public consultation but the commitment of the Council of Governors (COG) --- I want to say this on my own behalf; I speak for myself because they wrote a letter to the Senate to say that this House should not proceed with this Bill and so forth. Their commitment to the questions they have on the Bill must be demonstrated, so that later they do not lament that we passed a law, they are the ones who are managing at the county level and they were not available to provide their issues. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}