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{
"id": 1399961,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399961/?format=api",
"text_counter": 262,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sigor, UDA",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Peter Lochakapong",
"speaker": null,
"content": "We will have the County Disaster Committees at the county level to be headed by somebody who will be competitively recruited. That way, we will have a situation where the two levels of government coordinate and work together to address cases of disaster. The people who are in the counties are Kenyans. We do not have people of the national Government and people of the county governments. Whenever a disaster occurs, it affects Kenyans. This Bill is good because it is going to help in terms of reaction time between the time a disaster occurs and the time it is addressed. Hon. Temporary Speaker, I know the various issues that have been put forward will be taken into consideration. The enactment of this Bill will lead to efficient and effective management of disasters across the country. Contributions made by Members here have suggested that it may be too bureaucratic between the time a disaster occurs and the time it is classified. However, the reaction time between when a disaster occurs and when it is addressed will be short time because we have also classified it into a county and national disaster. In one that affects more than one county, we have called it national, but when it affects one county, it remains a county disaster. In instances where it affects one county and the county is unable to manage it, we call it a national disaster. We have also said that the President can declare a state of disaster. The President comes in if the magnitude of a disaster gets to a certain level to declare a state of national disaster. With all the input by the Members and what we have proposed as a Committee for amendments, this Bill will go a long way in ensuring that whenever disasters strike or whenever we have instances or cases of disasters, there will be a coordinated way of responding to them and in a timely manner. With those few remarks, I sincerely thank the Members who have contributed. I beg to reply. Thank you."
},
{
"id": 1399962,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399962/?format=api",
"text_counter": 263,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. Peter Kaluma",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": {
"id": 1565,
"legal_name": "George Peter Opondo Kaluma",
"slug": "george-peter-opondo-kaluma"
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"content": " Thank you very much, Mover. For the convenience of the House, the Question on Second Reading of this Bill will be put the next time it will be scheduled for consideration by the House Business Committee."
},
{
"id": 1399963,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399963/?format=api",
"text_counter": 264,
"type": "scene",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "(Putting of the Question deferred)"
},
{
"id": 1399964,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399964/?format=api",
"text_counter": 265,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. Peter Kaluma",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": {
"id": 1565,
"legal_name": "George Peter Opondo Kaluma",
"slug": "george-peter-opondo-kaluma"
},
"content": "Next Order."
},
{
"id": 1399965,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399965/?format=api",
"text_counter": 266,
"type": "heading",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "MOTION"
},
{
"id": 1399966,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399966/?format=api",
"text_counter": 267,
"type": "heading",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "ADOPTION OF REPORT ON FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR NG-CDF FOR CONSTITUENCIES IN VIHIGA COUNTY"
},
{
"id": 1399967,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399967/?format=api",
"text_counter": 268,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Hon. Peter Kaluma",
"speaker_title": "The Temporary Speaker",
"speaker": {
"id": 1565,
"legal_name": "George Peter Opondo Kaluma",
"slug": "george-peter-opondo-kaluma"
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"content": " Mover."
},
{
"id": 1399968,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399968/?format=api",
"text_counter": 269,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mwingi Central, WDM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Gideon Mulyungi",
"speaker": null,
"content": " Hon. Temporary Speaker. I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, this House adopts the Report of the Decentralized Funds Accounts Committee on its examination of audited Financial Statements for the National Government Constituencies Development Fund for five Constituencies in Vihiga County for Financial Years 2013/2014, 2014/2015, and 2015/2016, laid on the Table of the House on Wednesday, 14th February 2024. The Decentralised Funds Accounts Committee is a Select Committee established pursuant to the National Assembly Standing Order 205(b) and is responsible for the examination of the reports of Auditor-General on the accounts of, among others, the National Government-Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) and the National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF). The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor"
},
{
"id": 1399969,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399969/?format=api",
"text_counter": 270,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mwingi Central, WDM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Gideon Mulyungi",
"speaker": null,
"content": "The NG-CDF has had significant impacts on our communities and on individual lives since its establishment in 2003. Hon. Members can attest that the Fund has helped transform our communities through the development and maintenance of infrastructure projects, especially in schools and other educational facilities, as well as provision of bursaries to needy students. These NG-CDF funded projects have stimulated economic activities in the constituencies by providing employment opportunities during construction and enhancing local infrastructure that supports businesses leading to increased economic growth and prosperity. Improved access to education, on the other hand, has translated to communities to be more empowered leading to better lives. It is indeed an economic stimulus programme which should be cascaded to other development projects. One important aspect of the NG-CDF projects has been the participatory nature of the projects it funds. The NG-CDF often involves community participation in project selection, implementation and monitoring. This has empowered communities to take charge of their development priorities and foster a sense of ownership over the projects leading to sustainable development outcomes unlike other development projects. Oversight over national revenue and expenditure is amongst the roles of the National Assembly as stipulated under Article 95(4)(c) of the Constitution of Kenya. Further, Article 226 of the Constitution provides that an Act of Parliament shall provide for the designation of an accounting officer in every public entity at the national level, who is accountable to the National Assembly for its financial management. In addition, Article 229(8) of the Constitution mandates this House to debate and take appropriate action on audit reports from the Auditor- General. Further, Section 68(1) of the Public Finance Management Act 2012 provides, interalia, that an accounting officer of the national Government entity, Parliamentary Service Commission and the Judiciary shall be accountable to the National Assembly to ensure that the resources of the respective entity for which he or she is accounting officer are used in a way that is lawful, authorised, effective, efficient, economical and transparent. In addition, Section 12(3) of the National Government-Constituencies Development Fund Act No. 30 of 2015 provides that the Fund Account Manager shall hold the authority to incur expenditure of the funds at the constituency. The Fund Account Managers were, therefore, invited to respond to concerns raised by the Committee in their capacity as Authority to Incur Expenditure (AIE) holders. It is in line with this constitutional and legal provisions that the Committee invited the Fund Account Managers, both current and former, as accounting officers of the NG-CDF to respond to audit queries raised by the Auditor-General during their tenure. The Committee also invited the board of the NG-CDF to respond to policy issues which were also subjected to audit queries. Information received formed the basis for the various recommendations outlined in this Report which are geared towards effective management of the Fund. While examining the audited accounts for Vihiga, Sabatia, Hamisi, Emuhaya and Luanda constituencies in Vihiga County, the Committee observed that in the Financial Year 2013/2014, all the constituencies examined at audit issues raised following the High Court of Kenya ruling on Petition No.71 of 2013 which held that establishing the National Government- Constituencies Development Fund 2013, since enactment of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, was unconstitutional. The Committee further observed that the issue was overtaken by events as it was addressed and raised through the passing of the NG-CDF Act 2015 and its regulations in 2016, which aligned the Fund functions to national Government functions. The functions were further aligned by the enactment of the NG-CDF Act, 2023, recently passed by this honourable House. The Committee also observed in all the constituencies the Auditor-General had raised issues on under expenditure or non-implementation of projects due to late receipt of funds in the constituencies. The Committee observed that this was beyond the capacity of the fund The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor"
},
{
"id": 1399970,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399970/?format=api",
"text_counter": 271,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mwingi Central, WDM",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Gideon Mulyungi",
"speaker": null,
"content": "account managers and recommended that the National Treasury should ensure timely and adequate disbursement of funds to the NG-CDF Board for immediate release to the constituencies. Hon. Temporary Speaker, the Committee also observed that in all the constituencies examined, documents were availed late for verification during the audit period. It recommended that the accounting officer should ensure that the Fund Account Managers comply with the provisions of Section 62(1) (b) and (c) of the Public Audit Act No.34 of 2015, which provides that a person shall not - without justification - fail to provide information required under this Act, and without justification, fail to provide information within reasonable time that is required under this Act. The Committee also made some general observations and commendations on issues that cut across five constituencies in Vihiga County as follows: Firstly, in regard to reallocation and use of emergency funds, it observed that some of the projects funded using the funds did not meet the threshold of Section 6(2) and 8 of the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) Act, 2015. The Committee recommended that the NG-CDF Board should ensure that the Fund Account Managers comply with the provisions of Section 6(2) and 8 of the NG-CDF Act 2015, which provides that once funds are allocated for a particular project, they shall remain allocated for that project and may only be re-allocated for any other purpose during the financial year with the approval of the Board, and in Section 8(1), a portion of the Fund, equivalent to five per centum (hereinafter referred to as the \"Emergency Reserve\") shall remain unallocated and shall be available for emergencies that may occur within the Constituency. In Section 8(2), it provides that the constituency committee shall determine the allocation of the emergency reserve in accordance with the Act, and in Section 8(3), it provides that emergency shall be construed to mean an urgent, unforeseen need for expenditure for which it is in the opinion of the committee that it cannot be delayed until the next financial year without harming the public interest of the constituents. Secondly, in respect to pending ongoing projects, the Committee observed that the critical cause of them being common in their constituencies was partial allocation of funds for projects. It, therefore, recommends that the NG-CDF Board should, with immediate effect discourage the partial allocation of funds and ensure that the projects are completed at most within two financial years. Further, the NG-CDF Committee should ensure proper costing of the projects is done through consultation with the relevant Government and departments to ensure realistic cost estimates. The NG-CDF Board should also come up with a realistic policy framework of costing projects for each constituency by the end of the first quarter of the Financial Year 2023/2024 which is informed by the cost of materials and transportation, taxes, inflation index and the typography of each constituency. Thirdly, the Committee observed that there was poor coordination between the Office of the Auditor-General and the Fund Account Managers, particularly regarding the timely response to audit queries. The Committee further observed that there is a need for the NG- CDF Board to inform Fund Account Managers across the country to respond to audit queries promptly. The Committee recommended the NG-CDF Board to issue an administrative circular directing Fund Account Managers to comply with the provisions of the Constitution, 2010, the Public Audit Act No.34 of 2015, the Public Finance Management Act No.18 of 2012 and the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act No.33 of 2015. The Board ensures the Fund Account Managers maintain the original project management files at the NG-CDF office, or the duplicates are maintained at the project committees at the project sites to ensure that documents are available at the time of audit; and ensures that constituencies’ committees employ qualified accountants for the constituencies’ offices beginning the Financial Year The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor"
}
]
}