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{
    "id": 864283,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/864283/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 441,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Orengo",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Minority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 129,
        "legal_name": "Aggrey James Orengo",
        "slug": "james-orengo"
    },
    "content": "this Senate. I have stated my position with regards to certain provisions of this Bill that would require some re-consideration and amendment. After the year 2013, we really thought Kenya was going in the right direction because the current Constitution had created a new Republic. In fact, when the current Constitution was promulgated, the Grand Coalition Government of former President Kibaki was at that time being referred to as the „Third Republic‟. Many people felt that we had crossed the Rubicon. We were creating a new country and a new Kenya where we would live by new standards and where we would give our people hope. Unfortunately, there are things that are happening out there that make people think whether having a new Constitution helps at all. There are other people who are thinking that change of leadership, whether through the ballot makes things any better. There are those who are asking that the debate between the analogue and the digital; who have won? This is because the degree of corruption under the purveyors of the new technological world – although I think at that time characterisation of the other weighing or the competing forces was being digital, it was campaign posturing. However, with those new instruments that were given under the new Constitution, and under the new chapter dealing with leadership and integrity, Kenya should have been a better country than what it is today. With this, where it goes wrong is when public servants, including the people who we are going to give this responsibility to manage this Fund, begin to create or take these funds into personal treasuries. You know what happened in Congo; what Mobutu did with a rich country like Congo. We have seen South Africa struggling with the effects of a corrupt Government. At least in South Africa, the political forces were in a position to make change happen without a major upheaval and without going to an election. So, in Kenya, I am really worried the way we are showing Kenyans how the Kenyan leader lives in comparative terms to other leaders in other parts of the world. We are trying to give a very bad example to our people. We were just being told the other day that – the distinguished Senator for Nairobi was saying – somebody could say that I am paying for beautification in Nairobi from my personal funds and we accept it as a country without questioning. This is the same thing which Mobutu used to do. He could write one cheque to pay civil servants but the national Treasury would be unable to pay for months, yet one person would be able to do it and he would be praised for it. In Kenya we are reaching a level where we are worshipping money. We must restart with our leaders, including myself. We are worshipping money to the extent that people out there say that if this is what power entails, then if you create a fund like this and you want to go to State House, you must invade that fund or saving. I must say even the distinguished Senator from Bungoma; the only thing that would stop his journey to State House is that probably he has not stolen enough."
}