{"count":1608389,"next":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=160504","previous":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=160502","results":[{"id":1623222,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623222/?format=json","text_counter":4649,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Funyula, ODM","speaker_title":"Hon. (Dr) Ojiambo Oundo","speaker":null,"content":"I have so many other cases I wanted to address, but for the sake of time, let me tackle the elephant in the room: the issue of Universal Health Care. I have been a strong proponent of registration under the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) and the Social Health Authority (SHA). In my constituency, everywhere I go, I sing the gospel. There have been many good cases, and I applaud that. Hon. (Dr) Nyikal is here, and we must address universal healthcare, critical illness and the relationship between the Social Health Authority (SHA) and private hospitals. Currently, I have a case of a 19-year-old boy from my constituency admitted at Scion Hospital, Imara Daima, Nairobi. Two weeks ago, the bill was Ksh450,000. SHA paid Ksh56,000; the family has raised Ksh170,000, and he still needs approximately Ksh200,000. The patient is detained. He was hit while crossing the road during his side hustle. There has been no attempt to solve the problem. I implore you, Hon. Temporary Speaker and the Budget and Appropriations Committee, to create a social intervention system for such cases. We have nowhere to get the Ksh200,000. The longer he stays in the hospital, the bigger the problem becomes. I have a similar case of a patient detained in a private hospital in Eldoret who was not registered with SHA. That is the danger we have. We must invest in member registration. On money allocated to county governments, it is widely agreed that there is no value for the funds. Most of the money is lost in recurrent expenditure because county governments have become de facto employment bureaus. They employ everybody, including people who go to work and those without job descriptions, on their payrolls. The Office of the Auditor-General requested more money, and I am pleased that the Committee increased its allocation. We can save more money if they net the thieves in the county governments. It would be a travesty of justice to give them more money in the next financial year if they do not bring the thieves in the county assemblies to book. I also heard Hon. Atandi indicate that they have reduced the fiscal deficit. I am surprised by that because we have not yet passed the Finance Bill. Therefore, we do not know how much revenue we will generate. We should explain this process to Kenyans."},{"id":1623223,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623223/?format=json","text_counter":4650,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":" Give Hon. Oundo two minutes."},{"id":1623224,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623224/?format=json","text_counter":4651,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Funyula, ODM","speaker_title":"Hon. (Dr) Ojiambo Oundo","speaker":null,"content":" I will not take two minutes. We need a logical flow to define the expenditure and then give the revenue-raising measures. Only then can we know the fiscal deficit. If the Finance Bill fails, will we need another Supplementary as we did last year? Prudent management requires that you foresee and plan adequately. Let me conclude so that Hon. KJ can speak; he was after me. We must monitor budget performance. While we appropriate funds, the National Treasury often fails to disburse them. At the end of the year, what should have been done remains undone. Therefore, the Budget becomes a consumption budget and not a productive one. This is the reason our economy is not expanding."},{"id":1623225,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623225/?format=json","text_counter":4652,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":" Hon. Members are advised to read the Committee Report and the Budget Estimates under the Schedule, the voluminous one. Many Members often focus on the summarised Report, but the Schedule is a bit more specific. Hon. Kiarie John."},{"id":1623226,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623226/?format=json","text_counter":4653,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Dagoretti South, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. John Kiarie","speaker":null,"content":" Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I also thank Hon. Samuel Atandi and congratulate him for preparing his maiden Budget Estimates Report. In the same breadth, I congratulate the Committee that he Chairs, which has judiciously combed through the Budget Estimates. The Committee had time to listen to the sector proposals. I must say that this year, things have been a bit different. The Report that he has presented to this House is true to the submissions made by the different departmental committees before the Budget and 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":1623227,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623227/?format=json","text_counter":4654,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Dagoretti South, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. John Kiarie","speaker":null,"content":"Appropriations Committee. Allow me also to appreciate the tireless work that was done by the Chair emeritus, Hon. Ndindi Nyoro, who is also a Member of this Committee. I want to believe that he was part of the team that burned the midnight oil to ensure that this Report gets to us in time. Based on the work that has been done, it is clear that the Committee was very keen to move in the direction of austerity. The Committee did so while balancing numerous competing interests. What it has done for the Financial Year 2025/2026 will start us off on a good trajectory towards where we want Kenya to go, especially by being true to the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA). I want to say this from the bottom of my heart. One day, when the generation of Members of Parliament in the 13th Parliament will look back, they will be extremely proud of being part of the team that made difficult decisions. This is especially true at a time when Kenya could no longer continue kicking the can down the road. Some of the things that Hon. Atandi and his Committee are funding in this Report are things that Kenya has always desired. No single Presidential candidate has ever vied in this country without mentioning the issue of housing. They put that in their manifestos every time. However, when they try to implement it once in office, they shy off because of populist politics. This time around, we have a generation of leaders who have decided to take the bull by the horns, and we can see the results. In just one year of funding the affordable housing programme, we in Nairobi are seeing its benefits. Words cannot express what we saw in Mukuru when individuals who would never have dreamed of being in a stone-walled house with basic amenities, such as sinks with running water and toilets inside, received their house keys. Thanks to the decisions made by the generation of leaders this time. In Dagoretti South Constituency, we are awaiting the Budget Estimates, as presented by Hon. Sam Atandi. We expect to see the largest infrastructural drive in the history of our constituency following the emergence of affordable housing projects in Gachui and Riruta and the groundbreaking for markets in Riruta Waithaka and Gachui. These decisions must be made by people who understand that you do not need to be popular all the time. In leadership, sometimes you have to make very tough decisions, and history will vindicate you. We saw it with former President Mwai Kibaki when he made tough decisions, especially during the grand coalition with Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Raila Odinga. If we may remember, Kenyans were shouting down President Kibaki and Rt. Hon. Raila when they were doing infrastructural development. They said that they did not like the Kikuyus because they were demolishing their houses. However, the moment Thika Road and the bypasses came into operation, everybody started saying that Kibaki was the best President that Kenya had ever had. Building is painful, but the benefits that accrue out of it once a project is complete are for posterity. Hon. Sam Atandi is helping us to fund the University Funding Model. When the late Hon. Mwai Kibaki attempted to introduce free primary education, some people shouted him down, saying that he is not giving us masomo ya bure but masomo bure . People said it was not possible to admit all those children into primary schools and give them quality education. We are seeing the results today. I see the work that the Budget and Appropriations Committee has done in moving us towards the realisation of dreams that Kenya has had as aspirations since the inception of our country. I noted the Committee's observation regarding revenue mobilisation. It cannot be taken lightly when the Committee recommends that the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) needs to improve its methods of mobilising revenue. In this technological age, KRA can be more innovative and creative. I have seen what is happening in Malawi, where their revenue authority invites people to enter a lottery with their Electronic Tax Register (ETR) receipts, thus promoting taxpayer compliance and improving revenue collection. KRA attempted the 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":1623228,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623228/?format=json","text_counter":4655,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Dagoretti South, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. John Kiarie","speaker":null,"content":"same, but it went the wrong way. This is because when it comes to some of these things, you must depend on experts to get it right. The Committee made observations on the management, mobilisation and utilisation of A-in-A within Government institutions. The Committee's observation must be followed by a recommendation because if A-in-A is streamlined within Government agencies, the Government would comfortably raise in excess of half a trillion shillings. The Budget Estimates that have been presented by the Committee also speak to issues in the sector that I superintend. I Chair the Departmental Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation. The Budget Policy Statement (BPS) noted and identified that creative and digital economies offer great opportunities for work engagement and raising money for the youth in this country. That is why we have allocated in excess of Ksh16 billion to the State Department for ICT and Digital Economy in the Budget. We have also allocated in excess of Ksh6 billion to the State Department for Broadcasting and Telecommunications. We aim to use those funds to develop ICT infrastructure by rolling out over 35,000 kilometres of fibre, providing internet connectivity to more than 43,000 institutions, schools, hospitals, and Government offices. I say this at a time when it must be noted that connectivity is not just a mere utility. Connectivity today is a matter of life and death. Some systems in the civic, security and military sectors depend on connectivity for operations to take place. That connectivity speaks to the development of our country and our ability to raise revenue. We were able to raise a significant amount during the budget-making process."},{"id":1623229,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623229/?format=json","text_counter":4656,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":" Give one minute to Hon. KJ."},{"id":1623230,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623230/?format=json","text_counter":4657,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Dagoretti South, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. John Kiarie","speaker":null,"content":" Hon. Temporary Speaker, the final point I would like to mention is that we have noted persistent budget cuts and inadequate allocations, which have led to delays in major capital projects. I pray that the Committee led by Hon. Samuel Atandi, a financial mind of great repute, is going to be vigilant to the extent that this Budget shall be implemented as passed by this House. So, that we do not run into the situation where, after we pass such a good Budget, we end up with exchequer problems. Even worse, wecome back to the House with a supplementary budget that negates very important things passed in the main Budget. I have much to say about our sector. However, with those few points, allow me to support this Report on the Consideration of the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for the Financial Year 2025/2026. I commend the new Chairman and his Committee for a job well done. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker."},{"id":1623231,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1623231/?format=json","text_counter":4658,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Peter Kaluma","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":null,"content":" Hon. Martin Owino, Member for Ndhiwa, will now be heard."}]}