{"count":1608389,"next":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=154766","previous":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=154764","results":[{"id":1565842,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565842/?format=json","text_counter":257,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"Housing Levy Fund, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) and the County Aggregated Industrial Parks (CAIPs). These are policy decisions that have been taken at the national level, which policy decisions have a direct bearing on the revenues of county governments. When you say that you are going to allocate Kshs250 million for the CAIP in every county and every county government is supposed to match that allocation, it is not like there is any county government that has the option of opting out. All of them must spend Kshs250 million to match the government expenditure for the parks. For this reason, there is need to consider that amount in the allocation to counties. If you do not, what it means is that they will have to stop other budgetary allocations for their functions to support the industrial parks and that is basic intelligence. On the issue of the UHC and every speaker has spoken to this matter, hardly a day passes before medics working under the UHC demonstrate outside of Parliament and specifically outside the gates of the Senate. I heard the Cabinet Secretary responsible for Health the other day saying that they are now going to be offloading the UHC staff to county governments. If that is going to happen, then the expectation, would be that all these UHC staff, if they have got to migrate to the county government's payrolls, then they must migrate with their budget for their salaries and allowances. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, you cannot expect that you will migrate such a huge portion of workers and staff to a level of government and then that level of government is supposed to use their own money again to pay and compensate the important services offered by UHC staff. So, there is reason to stick to the guidance by our committee to ensure that counties get Kshs465 billion for the next financial year. I want to address myself to the issue of roads. There has been debate as to whether some of the roads that are being done by the national government agencies, including the Kenya National Highways Authority (KENHA) and the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA), actually do not belong to county governments. Truth be told, I am happy that I have heard that the Prime Minister will be with us tomorrow. We will have a conversation about these issues because I know this is a matter that is very dear to him. On the issue of monies allocated to roads in this country, there is no denying that the agencies of government, especially KENHA and KeRRA are undertaking road projects that actually belong to county governments. Maybe the time has come to consider scrapping those agencies and transferring those funds to county governments so that they may be able to roll out road projects in their respective counties. There have been arguments all through that when you send money to the counties, the money is being stolen, you know, governors are misappropriating funds. That can never be a reason why we should not add monies to counties. That is a lazy argument. If it is true - and I know it could be true - that money is being misappropriated at the county level, there is a law that deals with people misappropriating funds at whatever level of government."},{"id":1565843,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565843/?format=json","text_counter":258,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."},{"id":1565844,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565844/?format=json","text_counter":259,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"May 21, 2025 SENATE DEBATES 36"},{"id":1565845,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565845/?format=json","text_counter":260,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"Instead of saying that we will not give more money to counties because they will misappropriate the funds, go for the people that are misappropriating those funds and charge them in a court of law so that we do not punish Kenyans who are supposed to be enjoying the fruits of devolution by the lazy argument, that if we give more money to counties, then the governors and their cronies will steal the money. On the issue of the sharing of revenue to county governments and national Government, I wish this argument would sink and sink well. There is a very big misplaced notion that the national Government can allocate money to county governments. That is a notion that we must really deal with. I do not know what has happened to a Bill that I had proposed to separate the Ministry of Finance and National Treasury. I think it is still being worked on, I do not know. Surely, it can never be that the national Government will decide how much money will be given to county governments. That is not their work to do. The decision as to how much money goes to each level of government is a decision of Parliament. The last time I checked, Parliament is defined as the Senate and the National Assembly. So, this matter sits properly where it is. It is us, elected leaders of the national legislature, to decide the division of revenue between the two levels of government, the national Government and the county governments. So, what the National Treasury can do is just make a submission like any other stakeholder would make a submission, on how the monies should be shared. It should never be lost on us, as legislators and as leaders in this country, that this is our responsibility. This is not the responsibility of the national Government to determine and decide how much money will go to county governments. Another issue is that I want to address governors. We spend much time on the floor of this House trying to push as much as we can to allocate funds that are commensurate with the functions allocated to county governments. At times when we are negotiating and pushing for more funds, more often than not, the governors would strike a deal at some organization called Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) and decide to settle for less. Just by that stroke of decision, our people begin to suffer lower allocations. On this one, I plead with our governors to sit back and wait for the Senate to fight for allocation to counties because that is a core responsibility and function of the Senate. As I conclude, the CRA has a responsibility and a duty of care to ensure the success of devolution. One of the greatest things and assignments that the CRA should have undertaken by now, more than 15 years into devolution, is the aspect of costing devolved functions. I do not know why it has taken forever for the CRA to do proper costing of devolved functions so that we stop groping in the dark. This is so that when we say we want to finance a devolved function such as agriculture in the 47 counties in the country, how much money is needed to be allocated to the counties to deal with matters such as agriculture or health? The CRA must be called out to move with speed and ensure that they cost devolved functions. On the indication of the percentages that should go to each level of"},{"id":1565846,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565846/?format=json","text_counter":261,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."},{"id":1565847,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565847/?format=json","text_counter":262,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"May 21, 2025 SENATE DEBATES 37"},{"id":1565848,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565848/?format=json","text_counter":263,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"government, the English used is very simple and basic, that it is at least 15 per cent. So the argument there should be that whatever you do, that allocation should not be less than 15 per cent of the nationally collected revenue. That 15 per cent is not a dictate. The real analysis of that provision is that you can decide to give even 80 per cent of the nationally collected revenue to counties and give 20 per cent to the national Government. That is the interpretation provided that you do not give county governments less than 15 per cent of the nationally collected revenue. What does nationally collect revenue mean? We are talking about monies collected in every corner of this country. It is very unfair to the remote parts of our country where revenues are collected and so little of it is ploughed back to those regions. The people of Kaningo in Mwingi North and Usweni who are your neighbours in Mwingi North, the people of Athi, who border Kibwezi and Makueni County, contribute to the nationally collected revenue in this country. They need the monies ploughed back to them for service delivery. On the issue of roads, it is ridiculous that we will collect money from all over, including the Road Maintenance Levy Fund (RMLF). I am very happy that the Prime Minister will be here tomorrow. I am very sure he is very passionate about the matter of the RMLF. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we collect money from all over the country because vehicles are being fueled all over the country. Then you take almost the entire amount of money and you give it to national Government road agencies to roll out projects. Yet the bulk of the people who have contributed to that fund continue to suffer bad roads. It is time that this Senate put their foot on the ground and insist that we will stick to Kshs465 billion allocated to the county governments. Lastly, to the members of the National Assembly. We will take the invitation to go into mediation on this Bill, but they should know that the country is watching. Every Kenyan lives in a county. I do not know the problem Members of the National Assembly have with devolution. I have said before and I want to go back on record that the biggest enemy of devolution in this country, first in that list is the National Assembly. Why would you want to allocate less money to roll out functions in your constituencies, functions that are affecting your own family members; your own constituents? If we send more money to counties and it is used to roll out health programmes, do water projects and roads, it is the people in the constituencies represented by members of the National Assembly who stand to benefit. I do not see why we should be having this argument all the time, every year over division of revenue. Every time this fight comes up the National Assembly is allocating less money while the Senate wants more money. I do not know why this battle is important, but because we have been invited into this battle, we will get into the ring. We will fight and win for the Kenyans living in our counties. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, with those many remarks, I support the report of the Finance and Budget Committee and the proposed amendments to the Bill."},{"id":1565849,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565849/?format=json","text_counter":264,"type":"other","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."},{"id":1565850,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565850/?format=json","text_counter":265,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"May 21, 2025 SENATE DEBATES 38 Sen. Wafula","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, for this opportunity. I plead to switch languages, so that I communicate to Kenyans. Asante kwa nafasi hii ili nichangie kuhusiana na mapendekezo ya fedha ambazo zapaswa kwenda kwa kaunti. Seneti imejieleza wazi kwamba tunahitaji Shilingi bilioni 460 ili kugharamia changamoto na hali ya maisha katika kaunti zetu na bajeti ambazo kaunti zimewasilisha katika mabunge yao. Wiki iliyopita vikundi vya Maseneta vimekuwa vikizuru pembe mbalimbali za nchi ya Kenya kukagua miradi ya maendeleo na utekelezaji wa ugatuzi. Mimi ni mmoja wa Kamati ya Afya ambapo tulizuru kaunti ya Wajir, Marsabit na Mandera. Tuliyoyaona ni ya kusikitisha, kwamba baadhi ya kaunti ambazo tunazo hazina fedha za kutosha kununua mitambo ya kisasa ya matibabu na kuajiri matabibu ambao tumeona wakiandamana na wana ari ya kutoa huduma kwa Wakenya. Kamati ya Ardhi imezuru Kisii na Busia. Tunaona vile vile lazima sekta hiyo ipewe fedha za kutosha ili masuala ya ardhi katika kaunti yashughulikiwe. Iwapo hayo yote ni lazima yatekelezwe, ni lazima tuongeze kimo au fedha zinazoenda kwenye kaunti zetu. Bw. Naibu wa Spika, wiki iliyopita, nilikua na Kamati ya Ukulima, Uchumi Samawati na Ufugaji katika Kaunti ya Bungoma. Kulikuwa na ari au moyo kwa wakulima wa kahawa waweze kupata ardhi ya kuzindua taasisi ya utafiti au maabara ya kutafiti aina na ubora wa kahawa. Kama tunataka hivi vyote vitekelezwe, ni lazima bajeti zinazoenda katika kaunti zetu ziimarishwe. Kule kwetu, wakulima wa maziwa wanauza lita Shilingi 35, lakini kule maeneo mengine nchini, wanauza kwa Shilingi 50. Kile tunasema, ni lazima fedha ziongezwe katika makadirio ya bajeti ili magavana waweze kuajibika kwa fedha walizo nazo na Wakenya waandame fedha hizi kuhakikisha kwamba zinatekeleza majukumu yao. Kule Bungoma, Serikali imezindua baadhi ya soko pale Bukembe, ukija Misikhu, ukienda Webuye, Cheptonon na mji mkuu wa Bungoma. Serikali imeweka hizi soko kandarasi ili watu wachukue zabuni na kujenga. Lakini, itakuaje kwamba Serikali ya kitaifa inataka kufanya kazi ya kaunti ambazo zilipigiwa kura na magavana ambao wako na wajibu wa kujenga soko. Bw. Naibu wa Spika, tunashukuru Serikali kwa kuanzisha mchakato wa kujenga soko lakini tunaposonga mbele, bajeti ziwekwe kwenye kaunti zetu ili magavana na mawaziri wao wapange na viongozi wa wadi wadhibiti na kuchunga jinsi fedha hizi zinazotumika. Ndio sababu mimi nasema, Bunge la Taifa wana fedha wanataka zidhibitiwe katika mikoba yao lakini sisi kama Maseneta ni lazima tuhakikishe Wakenya ambao kila mara wanakamuliwa na ushuru, tuwafanyie kazi. Ukienda maeneo yaliyo na ukame, wana shida ya maji. Maji yamegatuliwa na ni lazima wawe na mitambo na mashine ya kuchimba maji ili kina mama wajinufaishe. Ukienda sekta ya vyuo anwai na shule za chekechea, utagundua baadhi ya maeneo ni vyumba peke yake vimejengwa na hakuna vifaa vya kutosha au vyakula virutubishi vya kuinua afya ya watoto. Pia hakuna walimu wa kutosha wa kufunza watoto hawa. Bw. Naibu wa Spika, itawezekanaje kaunti zitekeleze majukumu haya pasipo kua na pesa za kutosha ili kuhakikisha watoto wanapoenda shule, wanapata nafasi sawa na"},{"id":1565851,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1565851/?format=json","text_counter":266,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"May 21, 2025 SENATE DEBATES 38 Sen. Wafula","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."}]}