Hon. Members, we seem to be short of the requisite quorum. Therefore, I order that the Quorum Bell be rung.

I will give the Whips an additional five minutes. The Bell will be rung for five more minutes and then we will make a decision.

We now have the requisite quorum after a great struggle. It is fairly understood considering that many Members are participating very seriously in trying to reclaim their seats in the primaries. Others are doing things that are close to that. So, we shall proceed.

(Hon

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to present this Petition that I was supposed to present yesterday, but due to unavoidable circumstances, I was not able to do. 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.

I have a Petition on behalf of the former employees of Chogoria Farmers Co-operative Society Limited which is in liquidation on unpaid dues.

I, the undersigned, on behalf of employees of Chogoria Farmers Co-operative Society Ltd (in liquidation) in Tharaka Nithi County, draw the attention of the House to the following: (i) THAT, Chogoria Farmers’ Co-operative Society was registered as a co- operative society in 1986, under registration No.4594. (ii) THAT, the society consisted of eight coffee factories and had more than 3,000 registered members. (iii) THAT, in 1998, the society was put in liquidation and in October 1998, 122 employees were dismissed from service. (iv) THAT, these former employees were neither paid their salary arrears nor terminal benefits. (v) THAT, in March 2004, the liquidator was suspended following a directive by the then Minister for Co-operative Development. (vi) THAT, in 1999, the liquidation committee sold more than 5,000 bags of coffee beans for the year 1997/1998. (vii) THAT, to-date, the former employees have not been paid their dues. (iix) THAT, efforts to have our grievances addressed by the relevant authorities have not yielded any satisfactory action; and, (ix) THAT, the issues in respect of which this Petition is made are not pending before any court of law, constitutional or legal body. Therefore, your humble Petitioners pray that the National Assembly, through the Departmental Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Cooperatives: (i) Causes the audit of the liquidation accounts. (ii) Recommends payment of the dues to the former employees of Chogoria Farmers’ Co- operative Society. Your Petitioners will forever pray.

(Hon

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me the opportunity to support this Petition.

One time, I was the Secretary of Cooperatives in Kenya. It is true that many co- operatives in the 1900s and a while back went through very difficult times. However, a co- operative society is a body corporate. It can sue and can be sued and action can be taken or even a petition brought to Parliament for intervention. It is possible in law. Therefore, it is only fair that once a body corporate hires people, like what this co-operative society did, the moment it is liquidated, such people should be paid their dues and the shareholders paid their shares. Most of 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.

these co-operative societies are very rich, especially from that region. They have a lot of assets. What has happened in the past is mismanagement. I believe the Committee in charge of cooperatives will do its best and Hon. Muthomi Njoki’s constituents will be paid their dues with interest. It is also a caution. Now, there is a new Commissioner for Co-operatives who is mandated to take stock and ensure that the property belonging to co-operative owners is not plundered.

Members must always pronounce names of their colleagues correctly especially when it is a name like that one of Muthomi Njuki because if you say “Muthomi Njoki”, that becomes an issue. We have been here for four years. Surely, we should know the names of every one of our colleagues without any difficulty. I do not know if the Member for Imenti Central wants to speak to this one.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I have heard the Petition by Hon. Muthomi Njuki, but I have not heard him mention anything about the co-operative tribunal. It is good for those aggrieved employees of the former co-operative society to seek intervention from the co-operative tribunal, which is set up by the Ministry to look at grievances from the various cooperative societies.

Proceed.

Who will be moving this Procedural Motion? Is it the Deputy Majority Whip? Before you do that, let me take this opportunity to recognise the presence, in the Speaker’s Gallery, of students from the Precious Blood School, Riruta in Dagoretti North, Nairobi. I believe that is a constituency represented ably by Hon. Arati. Also in the Public Gallery, we have students from Nyandarua Primary School from Ol Kalou Constituency of Nyandarua County. They are here to learn from the procedures of the House. We wish them fruitful learning. Let us proceed. Let us have the Deputy Majority Whip to move the Procedural Motion.

Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, on behalf of the Leader of the Majority Party, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, this House orders that the business appearing as Orders No.9 (Debate on Presidential Address), be exempted from the provisions of the Standing Order 40(3) being a Wednesday Morning, a day allocated for business not sponsored by the Majority or Minority Party or business sponsored by a Committee. This Motion, as the title reads, is procedural. This is to allow Members to debate the Presidential Address, so that we can complete this Motion in a record time. This Motion began 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.

yesterday and quite a number of Members did not contribute to it. This is an opportunity for Members, especially those who have not been participating as much, to have the opportunity to speak now that the President was addressing the nation through the National Assembly. I am sure we will not have any other Member objecting to this. I would like to request the Leader of the Majority Party, who came in when I was already on the Floor, to second.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I beg to second this Procedural Motion. I am sure the House Business Committee (HBC) has decided. This Procedural Motion is here because today is a day, set as always, for Private Members’ Motions and Bills. It was resolved that we give priority to the continuation of debate on the Address by the President. The Presidential Debate goes on for three days. The HBC decided yesterday afternoon that today morning and afternoon will culminate into the end of the debate. Being a Wednesday morning, I am sure it is procedural that the House should not assume that this Procedural Motion must be moved and agreed on for debate on the Presidential Address to continue. That is why we have brought this Procedural Motion. I am sure Members will have time to deal with the President’s Speech and the documents he tabled during this morning and the afternoon’s sitting. I beg to second.

Put the Question!

Therefore, Members, we will proceed to the debate on the Presidential Address, this being the second day.

I will assume there was no Member who had a balance of time. I do not know if that assumption is accurate. Let me confirm. Yes, it is accurate. So, we will proceed and give Members a chance in the order of their logging in. We will give the first opportunity to Hon. Chachu Ganya.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for this great opportunity to support the Presidential Address by Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta on the state of the nation. I was impressed by the statesman Address that our President gave to this House and the nation at large. The Presidential Address captured our national challenges, aspirations and also went further to specify tangible solutions that we need to implement in this great nation. The Speech was very holistic in the sense that it captured every corner of our great nation. My own great people of Marsabit County were delighted when the President mentioned places such as Turbi, Moyale and Marsabit when he spoke in relation to the infrastructural development that the Government has undertaken in the last four-and-a-half years of his administration. I just want to highlight two issues, that is, devolution as well as infrastructure transformation that has been done by this Government in the last four-and-a-half years. Devolution is the hallmark of our new constitutional order. The support by this administration for devolution is incredible. This administration increased the percentage of shareable revenue from 15 per cent, which is the threshold provided for in the Constitution, to 34 per cent. There are a lot of resources that have been devolved to develop all the counties in our nation.

In addition to increasing the sharable revenue from 15 per cent to 34 per cent, the national Government supplemented the development agenda of many counties through financial grants, particularly in areas such as health and water. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, my county, Marsabit County, County No.10, is a glaring example of this transformation. Today, our old hospitals such as Moyale and Marsabit hospitals have been refurbished. They are now good hospitals which can serve the residents of those areas. In addition to that, we now have new fledged hospitals such as the Kalacha Referral Hospital in my constituency which is the first one ever since Independence. We also have Laisamis Hospital in Laisamis Constituency, which is a fully operational hospital for the first time, where our mothers can have caesarean sections. Many other support services that are required in healthcare are being provided in these facilities. In North Horr Constituency, which is the largest in the Republic of Kenya, my people who used to travel from Telesgaye, a distance of 600 km to Marsabit Referral Hospital, can now travel for only 250 kilometres to the new refurbished Kalacha Referral Hospital and get the necessary support that they need. The distance has been reduced by more than half in four-and-a-half years. 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.

I also thank the leadership of my county led by His Excellency, Governor Ukur Yatani, for the good job he is doing in that county. This is not only true in Marsabit County, but also in Modogashe in Garissa County, as well as many other areas.

In terms of roads transformation, Wajir County today is proud of the first tarmac road ever in the county. It is the same thing in counties such as Marsabit, Isiolo and Samburu where we have an international class road plying our counties. This is as a result of the Isiolo-Marsabit- Moyale Highway which connects Cape Town and Cairo. The residents of Moyale in Marsabit County travel for only seven hours instead of the three days they used to travel on the back of trucks carrying cows and sheep, to Nairobi. Today, there are over 30 buses plying that road which is transforming the county in a very major way. Today, we have new economic transformation in Marsabit County where we have new hotels and buildings coming up. We can get produce from Meru within a few hours. That is why we, the people from the north, strongly support the administration of President Uhuru Kenyatta, and particularly through the Frontier Alliance Party of Kenya, which I am the Secretary-General. We will mobilise and tell the people of the northern Kenya to support the re-election of President Uhuru Kenyatta because our aspirations have been met. I am sure the people of northern Kenya will vote for our President, Uhuru Kenyatta, for the good work he has done. Our aspirations and development agenda have been met in many ways. Any Government which develops its people, stands the challenge of the day and stands with its people at times of crisis such as drought---

Your time is over. So, we will give the opportunity to the Member for Belgut.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to air my views on the President’s Address. First and foremost, I want to take this chance to thank the President for his effort in bringing a very big change in this country. You can recall the tremendous achievement that we have made in various fields. First, in the field of education, a lot of exemptions have been given to students, for example, exemption in fees payment in primary schools and exemption in exam fees payment in secondary schools. That is another achievement which was not been done in many years. Another achievement which we have also realised in education is capitation, which has been increased. This has taken many years and students have been paying a lot of fees. I am sure our parents are happy with the fees they are paying because of this capitation.

I would like to thank the President for his efforts in the area of technical institutes. Many technical institutes have come up in almost every constituency in this country. This is historical because before this, we had very few technical institutes in the country. We are now proud because we can stand as a country and look at the progress we have made in this field.

I also want to commend the President for the way he has handled the issue of electricity in the country. Very few households were connected to electricity, but right now, many households have been connected to electricity in every constituency.

The other area I would also like to commend the President is on the field of healthcare. Most of our patients have been seeking medical care in hospitals outside the country like in 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.

India. The Jubilee Government has provided medical equipment for serious cases, particularly cancer, in many hospitals in the country. This is a very commendable job which the President has done and we ought to thank him for it. Free maternal care for our mothers is also another effort. Our mothers have paid for these services for many years, but thanks to our President for waiving the cost, they are now enjoying the benefit of free maternal healthcare.

I would also like to thank the President for the way he has handled road infrastructure in this country. Many roads have been tarmacked compared to many other years before. Since 1963, when we got Independence, very few roads were tarmacked, but for the last four years, a lot of roads have been tarmacked. In my constituency, we have a road from Tablotin via Kabianga University to Premier. We have others in Longisa and in almost every constituency in this country. We have made this tremendous improvement within a very short time, taking into account the Jubilee Government has only been in power for the last four years. This is tremendous work and the President should be congratulated.

With those few remarks, I wish to thank the President for the wonderful work he has done within a very short time.

Let us have the Member for Butula, Hon. Onyura.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me a chance to make some comments on His Excellency the President’s Address. I did not find this Address inspiring and giving hope to Kenyans. Some of the key areas where we expected clear information and statistics to see what is happening did not come out clearly. One area of serious concern in this country is unemployment. The percentages of unemployment are very much on the increase. We do not see the jobs the Jubilee Government promised to create every year. I have read that 2.3 million jobs have been created. I think somebody needs to come up clearly and tell us where these jobs are. We should be told in which areas or sectors the jobs have been created and which people have been employed. If you look at the level of unemployment, particularly in the rural areas, many young people who leave institutions from secondary schools, colleges and university, are unemployed. The levels of unemployment are so high that you hardly come across any new employees. I do not know whether the figures that are given are real. I do not think many Kenyans are convinced about this. Indeed, there was a survey that indicated that about 60 per cent of Kenyans were saying that the country is headed in the wrong direction. I just hope that 60 per cent will take the necessary action by throwing out this poor leadership that is heading us to the wrong direction.

Another area is food security, which has been handled very poorly. Kenyans should not be starving the way they are. If the policies on agriculture, irrigation and food production were followed and properly implemented, we would not have had food insecurity. What happened to the one million or so acres that were supposed to have been cultivated? Related to this is the issue of marketing, which is very poorly handled. It looks like the Government is not able to coordinate or assist farmers in various places. Many times, food is rotting in certain parts of 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.

country and farmers are discouraged from food production just because they do not have markets for their produce. We see this all the time, which to me, is very poor planning.

The President mentioned the issue of salary reduction. I do not know who advised him on this because that is a very simplistic approach. I do not see how that will assist the economy of this country to grow. If anything, if you reduce the salaries of employees, you will have a demotivated and demoralised workforce. I do not see if that will assist you to achieve your objectives and your Vision 2030. It is just going to increase levels of stealing and corruption. That is the wrong way to go. We should ask ourselves if we really need the 700,000 employees that we say the public service has. There is a lot of duplication, wastage and lazing around. A lot needs to be done and I hope in August, Kenyans---

Your time is over. Therefore, I will give the Floor to the Member for Vihiga, Hon. Yusuf Chanzu, CBS.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to make my contribution on the President’s Address. This is a mandatory and an annual requirement according to the Constitution. The President has to give such an Address to the nation annually and it is very important so that the Kenyan citizens are brought to speed with what is happening and what the Government is doing. The Speech was really one-sided. I do not know whether it was because of lack of adequate time that the President only talked about one side of the issues that he thought he had achieved. He did not address the aspects which give problems to Kenyans. I will start with the issue of reducing the wage bill. The most important thing is for the economy to grow. If the economy was growing, I do not think that would be a problem. If you compare the average earnings in a country like Kenya and the country which we want to emulate, the earnings are 10 times and these economies are growing. Again, when you excite the public that you will reduce salaries for Members of Parliament and then you compare the number of Members to the 700,000 civil servants, I do not know how much in terms of totals you would do. We have not addressed the problem that the Constitution has brought. As much as we are saying that the Constitution is progressive, we did not prepare how we will fund it. When we were working on the Constitution, we did not cost it. In the process of tug of war, which had been there for a long time between the Government and those who opposed the Government, the idea was to take away or reduce the power at the centre. In the process, we came up with commissions which are taking a lot of money. I do not think the amount of work the constitutional commissions do is commensurate with what they earn and even the numbers that we have in the commissions. When the President was the Minister for Finance, he came up with the idea that they wanted to get rid of the fuel guzzlers, namely, the big vehicles, which they did and brought the Volkswagen Passat. However, they did not clear the vehicles. Currently, every person in Government, including senior officers, their wives and children, have very expensive vehicles on the roads. The President needs to address that. We talk about the Members of Parliament, who only make mileage claims against what they have used to go to the constituencies. I see some of 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.

them on the roads and I think they move 24 hours. That is an issue that the President needs to address. That was his idea and this Parliament approved it. I do not see the smaller cars on the roads anymore. So, there are many other ways he cut costs. He did not tell us why the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) cost USD8 million per kilometre compared to what I have heard it cost in other parts of Africa where similar railways have been done - they cost USD3 million per kilometre. That is a very high cost. When you put together all the costs on projects like roads, you find that the cost of running the Government is very high. We should not talk about county governments universally and say that devolution has succeeded. Maybe devolution has succeeded in some places, but in Vihiga, by the time we finish this term, we shall be talking about minus Kshs10 billion.

I will give the chance to the Member for Wajir West, Hon. Ore.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to contribute to the President’s State of the Nation Address. The Address by His Excellency the President was supposed to be an opportunity for him to clearly put forward the achievements of his Government for the last four years or so. Going through the Address, I personally see that it is hollow. It is more of a public relations exercise and nothing much of what has been achieved. For the record, I want to start with the issues that a number of Members, have spoken about in terms of achievements. It is very clear that in our Constitution, there are two levels of governments; that is the national Government and the county government. Each government is accountable to the people of Kenya. Each government is accountable in terms of the resources that have been given to it. It will be very wrong for us to attribute achievements or functions that have already been devolved to the national Government. If you tell me about a tarmac road in Wajir, I do not think there is any contribution from the national Government on that. That should be an achievement by the County Government of Wajir. The same applies to health systems. I would like to touch on a few areas one of them being security. We know that we have had a lot of issues in terms of security and this is one of the pledges that the Jubilee Government gave that there will be a disciplined force that will be professional, conditions will improve and that our borders will be safe than ever before. Unfortunately, today our borders are porous. The enemy comes into our country at will to kill and maim. Nothing much has changed. The story we always hear is that our forces are in Somalia. To date, Kenyans are still wondering how many of our boys and girls were killed in El Adde. We know many lost their lives and many families are still suffering. These are issues that we needed to know from His Excellency the President. Still on security, we know there is extremism and we know the enemy is using a lot of tactics through our youth but the approach we are also taking is totally wrong. That is why there is no change. I can tell you for a fact that as we speak today, 21 youth in an Islamic school aged between 15 and 18 years have been taken by our forces and are missing. That is not the right 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.

solution to address issues of security. That is not the right solution or the right approach to address issues of extremism. The President had an opportunity to bring forward the scorecard to convince Kenyans why we should re-elect the Jubilee Government. We were told about 10,000-kilometre roads. That is a mirage in parts of Kenya. In North Eastern, since Independence up to now, we are being told about tarmac roads that are coming and we are still waiting. The same applies to food security. The one million acres, Galana Kulalu project is a hoax. Kenyans have been cheated. We need to be told where that money has gone. That is the only way---

I will give a chance to Hon. Paulata Korere. Hon. Fatuma, there is a lot of excitement in your corner which I cannot understand. It is not normal neither is it ordinary.

Ninashukuru Mhe. Naibu Spika wa Muda kwa kunipa fursa hii kuchangia Hotuba ya Mtukufu Rais kwa taifa tukufu la Kenya. Waswahili husema “aliye na macho haambiwi tazama”. Ndiposa nasimama mbele ya Bunge hili nikishangaa sana vile wapinzani wetu wanaongea. Kaka aliyesema mbele yangu amenishangaza kwa sababu anapotoka yeye, barabara ya lami ilifika baada ya Serikali ya Jubilee kuchaguliwa. Rais alizungumzia kuhusu vita dhidi ya uraibu wa madawa ya kulevya katika nchi tukufu ya Kenya. Hakuna Serikali nyingine ambayo nimeona ikipigana na janga hili la madawa ya kulevya na uraibu wake jinsi Serikali ya Jubilee ilivyopigana nayo. Vizazi vyetu haswa vijana wanaangamia kwa sababu ya madawa ya kulevya. Cha kushangaza, waraibu wakuu na wenye biashara kuu za madawa za kulevya ni watu ambao wana sifa kocho kocho katika nchi hii. Wamesikika na wameshikilia nyadhifa kubwa kubwa katika nchi hii na ni watu ambao wana nia ya kugombea kiti cha Urais katika nchi hii. Ndio maana ningependa kumwambia Rais wangu apigane na vita vya madawa ya kulevya, aokoe vizazi vyetu na vijana wa nchi hii.

Suala lingine nyeti ambalo Rais alizungumzia katika Bunge hili ni usalama. Yale ambayo tumeona yakifanyika haswa katika baadhi ya kaunti kama vile Laikipia ninakotoka, Kaunti ya Baringo, hawa ni majambazi ambao ni Wakenya na wanaangamiza wakenya wengine. Hii ndio maana ninataka kumpa heko hata kwa kutuma jeshi kwenda kudhibiti usalama. Rais anapozungumza kuhusu kupatia kazi vijana, tunaelewa biashara ambayo sisi Wanalaikipia tunafanya. Biashara ambayo iko Laikipia ni biashara ya utalii. Biashara ya utalii katika Laikipia inaenda kuangamia kwa sababu ya ujambazi na jinsi tulivyoona mahali pa utalii pakiharibiwa. Baadhi ya mambo ambayo yameharibu usalama na kuchangia sekta ya utalii kufa Laikipia ni siasa duni ambayo imechangiwa sana na wapinzani wetu. Hii ndio maana ninasema aliye na macho haambiwi tazama. Iwapo tutaua sekta ya utalii nchini, kazi kwa vijana itatoka wapi? Wale wanachangia katika kuua sekta ya utalii nchini wanatarajia kuchaguliwa kesho. Hawa ndio tunawaita mahasidi wasio na mbele wala nyuma. Tukitazama mambo ya ugaidi nchini na mipaka ya Kenya, ni sharti tupigane nayo. Jumamosi iliyopita tuliona Rais akitembelea vikosi vyetu vya jeshi kule Somalia. Ningeomba 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.

ndugu zangu walio katika Bunge hili kuwa, tupigane na ugaidi kwa pamoja na si kuliachia jambo hili Rais ama jeshi pekee. Ninavyoelewa ni kwamba, waliochangia pakuu kutuma jeshi letu Somalia, mmoja wao ni yule babu ambaye anatarajia kugombea kiti 2017 ambaye ni kinara wa Upinzani ambaye tunamfahamu kama Raila Odinga. Ninaomba ndugu zangu walio Upinzani wasipinge tu kwa sababu Serikali ya Jubilee imefanya, lakini wapinge kwa sababu ya kupinga.

Ukitazama sekta ya kawi---

I remind Members that you have five minutes each to speak. So, Hon. Members should always prepare themselves and watch the lights in these gadgets so that you can realise that your time is running out. Let us have Hon. Maanzo.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me an opportunity to comment on this debate on the President’s Address. One of the things the Jubilee Government came to power with, and it was a big promise, was the one million acres of irrigated land. In fact, the country invested a bit of money in it. I remember one time when the President visited Kulalu Irrigation Scheme with engineers and the people who were starting the project, he told them that they should not follow him to Nairobi immediately he commissioned the project. Some work was done but it was never completed. The Israeli Government came to assist. In fact, one of the things to make sure that water flows in that irrigation scheme is the Thwake-Athi Dam which is in Makueni. This dam has stalled up to date. Without storage of water, irrigation cannot be sustained. That river, once in a while after a long drought like the one we are experiencing now, dries up completely and you cannot get water at all. Therefore, we were futuristic. It was planned by the Kibaki Government under Kenya Vision 2030. The current President was a minister. He is familiar with all these projects which the Jubilee Government now claims to be its own. In fact, the Coalition Government put the country on autopilot so that most of the things they started would still go on even with bad management in future. For that matter, the one million acre irrigation scheme should have been spread across the country. We have many rivers all over the country, so that small acreage of about 100 or 1,000 would be feeding Kenyans today. Once you put it in one place, harvesting is expensive. No one can account for the harvest that was done in this irrigation scheme, who dealt with it, who sold it or who gave it to whom. It cannot be accounted for today. One of the biggest problems of this Government is accountability – being able to account for what the country owns. Kenya is a rich country. We have a lot of resources. We have coal which we are not exploiting. We also have oil whose exploitation has delayed. I believe if we mine our oil, we will do our budget because we will get Kshs20 trillion. Therefore, we will look like other countries which have exploited their resources, like Botswana. They do not pay taxes, school fees, or for health facilities. The citizens of those countries live well and happily. Roads are being constructed. So, we need to look for money to grow the economy. We have the resources. We have a lot of money around which gets lost through corruption. We have heard about the latest cases but no one has been prosecuted, locked behind bars and all the wealth recovered. So, we are losing a lot of money through corruption. This is what 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.

should be checked. As one Member has said, tarmac construction is much expensive in this country than in other countries. If you go to Zambia, which has a smaller economy than ours, they are doing very well in tourism. We are losing tourists to Zambia because of insecurity. We can check insecurity by first of all reorganising ourselves and moving out of Somalia and defending our borders because that is the requirement under international law. We were only in Somalia for a short while to stabilise things but now we seem to be staying there forever spending a lot of money. We need to reorganise how we do our budget and how we make sure that we deal with the issue of cattle rustling which is internal. Initially, the Government had plans to do a big buffer zone of irrigated crops because these cattle rustlers are ordinarily looking for food. If they find food, they will not go and kill Kenyans. We saw innocent children dying. We also saw children defending themselves with arrows. The same day the President was speaking, we lost 10 people. Children were defending themselves while we had a lot of security here, which was unnecessary. We need to get our priorities right and have a Government which will serve Kenyans better. I thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

We will have Hon. Janet Wanyama.

Asante sana Mhe. Naibu Spika wa Muda kwa kunipa nafasi hii nichangie Hotuba ya Mhe. Rais. Kwanza, ningependa kumshukuru Mhe. Rais kwa ajili ya kazi ambayo amefanya katika nchi yetu ya Kenya, haswa kuleta umoja kwa Wakenya. Mhe. Rais aliongea kuhusu mambo ya elimu katika nchi yetu ya Kenya. Mwenzangu mmoja amesema kwamba watoto wetu wakihitimu, wengine hawapati kazi. Katika darasa la nane na kidato cha nne, watoto wanafanya mitihani bila kulipa kitu chochote. Kuna watoto wengine wakifika katika kidato cha nne huwa hawahitimu kujiunga na vyuo vikuu. Mhe. Rais aliongea vizuri sana kuhusu jambo hili. Tuna macho na tumeona kuwa tuna vyuo vya ufundi, mahali tunapeleka watoto wetu ambao hawajahitimu kwenda chuo kikuu. Hiyo haimanishi kwamba watoto wetu wako na ujuzi wa kutosha kufanya kazi katika nchi yetu ya Kenya, haswa katika sekta mbalimbali. Jambo la pili, Rais alisema kwamba mnaweza kuona upande wa usalama katika nchi yetu ya Kenya. Tulikuja katika Bunge hili, tukapata kwamba wanajeshi wetu walikuwa wameenda kule Somalia kwa sababu ya kuleta usalama katika nchi ya Kenya na nchi jirani ya Somalia. Hawakutumwa waende kuwauwa, bali walikuwa wameshika doria kuhakikisha kwamba nchi jirani iko na usalama na sisi pia tuna usalama. Katika Hotuba yake, Mhe. Rais aliongezea kuwa wale waliopoteza maisha yao wakipambana na wahalifu, familia zao zilikuwa zinapewa fedha za kuendelea na maisha. Pia, Mhe. Rais aliongea kuhusu barabara. Ni hakika barabara zimetengenezwa. Ndugu zangu kutoka Wajir ama kaskazini mashariki ya Kenya walisema kwamba wamepata maendeleo kwa muda wa miaka mitano. Huu ni mwaka wa tano. Hapo awali kulikuwa na viongozi katika 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.

Bunge hili na Rais lakini hawakujaribu kufikia kiwango kile Mhe. Rais amefikia kwa miaka mitano. Heko kwa Mhe. Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta. Mhe. Rais hakukosea kuzungumza kuhusu changamoto. Changamoto zinatokana na ufisadi katika nchi yetu. Tukumbuke kwamba si Rais analeta ufisadi bali baadhi ya wanaoshikilia ofisi kuu. Katika Bunge hili, mtu akishikwa kuwa mfisadi, watu wanaibadilisha inakuwa ni ukabila. Wanasema huyu ni wangu ameshikwa, huyu ni wangu anaonewa. Rais akisema mshukiwa huyo anatakikana afanywe hivi, mtu mwingine anasema hapana. Huyu anatoka upande wangu, yaani upande wa Upinzani au wa Serikali. Mfisadi ni mfisadi, hata awe ndani ya kanisa ama ndani ya nyumba yako. Ninaunga Rais mkono. Inafaa sisi viongozi katika nchi hii ya Kenya tujue kwamba tuko na ufisadi na lazima tupigane nao. Kuna pesa ya wazee na ninafurahi kwa sababu inaboresha jamii ya Kenya. Pesa hizo hazikuwa zinafikia wazee wa enzi zile, lakini sasa unaweza kuona kwamba wazee wanafurahia kwa sababu hizi pesa zinawasaidia. Kuna watoto kutoka jamii maskini ambao hupata hizi fedha. Licha ya kuwa na hazina ya maendeleo katika maeneo ya Bunge, Rais pia amejitolea kutoa zake mwenyewe binafsi kufikia jamii isiyojiweza katika Kenya. Ninamuunga mkono Rais kwa kazi mzuri. Tumpatie tena miaka mitano. Heko kwa Rais.

The Member for Ruiru.

Asante sana Mhe Spika wa Muda kwa kunipa hii nafasi niweze kuchangia Hotuba ya Mhe Rais wa Jamhuri ya Kenya, Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta. Mengi yamesemwa na wale ambao wameongea mbele yangu. Mhe Rais hakutaja mambo yote ameyatenda. Watu wote wanasema amefanya miaka tano. Ninashangaa vile tunahesabu miaka kwa sababu tulimaliza miaka nne mwezi wa tatu ilhali ile kazi ambayo tunaongea juu yake ni kama ya miaka kumi. Tumeshukuru vile Mhe Rais amejaribu hata kuwaunganisha Wakenya. Kuwaunganisha Wakenya ni jambo moja muhimu kuliko kujenga barabara, reli ama madarasa. Mhe. Naibu Spika wa Muda, sisi kinamama tulikuwa tumesahaulika. Wakati Serikali ya Jubilee ilipochukua hatamu ya uongozi, tulitambulika na kupatiwa viti kadhaa. Hakuna ufisadi kinamama wanapoongoza. Tukiangalia katika maeneo Bunge yetu, tunaona watu wengi wanasema kwamba Rais hajafanya kazi. Tukiwa katika Bunge la Kitaifa, wapinzani wetu katika maeneo Bunge wanasema hakuna kazi yoyote ambayo tumefanya ilhali sisi tunajua kwamba tumefanya kazi. Kama kila mtu amefanya kazi katika eneo Bunge lake, sielewi ni kwa nini tunasema Rais hajafanya kazi. Pesa ambazo tumetumia kutekeleza miradi katika maeneo Bunge zimetoka kwa Serikali. Kama umejenga madarasa katika eneo Bunge lako, umesaidia. Umetoa pesa kujenga madarasa hayo na kufanya mambo mengine mengi. Basi kwa nini tuseme kwamba Serikali ya Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta haijafanya kazi? Hii ni kumanisha kwamba wewe unayesema hivyo hujafanya kazi katika eneo Bunge lako. Ninafuraha sana kwa sababu kinamama tulipoondolewa malipo ya huduma ya uzazi kwenya hospitali za umma, watoto wameongezeka kwenya eneo Bunge langu la Ruiru. Watu 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.

wakiongezeka, kura pia zitaongezeka. Jana nilitembelea Hospitali ya Ruiru, ambako nilishuhudia madawa na vifaa vingi vya matibabu vikipelekwa pale. Hii ni kwa sababu Serikali inafanya kazi. Kwenye ghala la madawa niliona vifaa ambavyo hutumiwa kuwasaidia kinamama wakati wanapojifungua. Kwa hivo, yangu ni kusema kwamba Rais wa Jamhuri ya Kenya, Mhe. Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta, amefanya kazi kubwa katika kipindi cha miaka minne.Tunamuunga mkono kwa sababu yeye ni Rais wa kwanza kushikilia uongozi wa Serikali yenye viwango viwili – serikali za kaunti, ambazo ziko na magavana na Serikali ya kitaifa, ambayo ina Wabunge. Pia, ninampongeza kwa sababu ametuunganisha sisi sote; makabila yote katika nchi ya Kenya. Kwa hivyo, Mhe. Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta yuko sawa. Tunasema aendelee na kazi, kama Esther Gathogo kutoka eneo Bunge la Ruiru alivyosema “mama aendelee na kazi”. Ahsante, Mhe. Naibu Spika wa Muda.

Let us have the Member for Mavoko.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this chance. I join the other Members who said that the President’s Address to Parliament was a good public relations exercise. Constitutionally, the President is supposed to address Parliament annually and dedicate the state of the nation to Kenyans. The President said that our country’s GDP has grown by 5.74 per cent, which is an indicator of a growing economy. However, if you look at the prices of basic necessities like milk and bread since Jubilee Government came to power, you will see that they have doubled. The price of a two-kilogramme packet of maize flour was Kshs65. It is now Kshs140. That is not an indicator of an economy that is growing. Therefore, I do not understand how Members can stand here and support the President’s Speech. I agree, it is his right to solicit for support for his presidential bid this year, but an economy that is doing well does not call for slashing of State officers’ salaries. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I was waiting for the President to address the issue of external debt. The other day this House was called upon to raise the external debt ceiling in order to allow the Government to borrow externally. Looking at our national Budget and the level of our external debt, there is no way we can say that this economy is growing. Even when the price of crude oil drops at the international market the pump prices of fuel in Kenya remain the same or are raised. Even when they are lowered, Kenyans enjoy the low prices for just a week. We cannot say that the economy is growing when the fundamental contributors to economic growth are underperforming. For instance, the tourism industry in this country is no more. Exports of agricultural commodities are no more. One wonders how the President can stand in this august House and claim that the economy is doing well. The President went ahead and said that Kenya is the third-best destination for doing business in Africa when we know that our failure to fight corruption has driven investors out of this country. Nobody wants to come and invest in Kenya. I expected the President to be categorical when he said that every household in the country is connected to electricity. 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.

The issue of electricity is a myth to most homesteads in this country. You cannot launch an electrification programme and say each household will pay Kshs15,000 connection fee only for the implementing agency to continue charging the normal fee. Most Members in this House will confirm that the Kshs15,000 electricity connection fee that the President promised Kenyans has not been actualised. Kenyans are still paying more than Kshs32,500. Even the distribution and connection is not being done as promised. You cannot tell me that we are going to grow the economy of this country without electricity. Therefore, I find that to be a lie. The Jubilee Coalition has failed in terms of implementing their manifesto. They have done nothing. Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) is the costliest in the world, at Kshs8 million per kilometre. Elsewhere in the world, it costs the equivalent of Kshs3 million per kilometre. I do not see why the handlers of the President should give him wrong information to give to Kenyans. We must tell Kenyans the truth. That is why I am in Wiper and NASA to stay. We are the government in waiting. Kenyans should be told the truth about the state of the economy of this country. Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker.

Let us now hear the Member for Kuresoi South, Hon. Z.K. Cheruiyot.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to also join my colleagues in commenting on the President’s Speech. It was a very good expose of the President’s management of the country in the past four year. I would like to commend the President particularly for the bold steps he has taken to address the issue of internal security. In the internal sector, he has done well. The level of crime has gone down. In Baringo, West Pokot and Turkana counties, and in other areas that are prone to cattle rustling, insecurity has been rampant. Overall, the President has done well. I urge him to ensure that there is good management of the National Police Service so that they do not involve themselves in activities which may injure wananchi. The President ought to have addressed the impact of global warming, which is causing havoc in most parts of this country. We are beginning to see severe famine and drought all over because of global warming. We need to sensitise Kenyans to enable them understand that the phenomena of global warming has already taken effect. We must start teaching wananchi so that they can also change their behavioural patterns. The issue of roads has not been addressed. Where I come from, we do not have roads. We are treated to tarmac roads which are of poor standards. In fact, they take too long to construct such roads. It is an issue of concern, and so, when you talk about the construction of 6,000 kilometers of road, I am really shocked because I do not see any in my backyard. I hope something is going to be done. I am concerned that what is going on is temporary tarmacking of our roads. This is interesting. You can be sure this is going to mess our economy because that is done at the cost of constructing a real and permanent tarmac road. 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.

I want to address the issue of sports for the youth. The President talked about having built stadia. In my backyard of Olenguruone, there was a natural stadium. A contract was given by the central Government for the construction of a stadium. A contractor moved in and only dug the whole area. It is now four years down the line and nothing else has been done. The contractor only shows up at the beginning of every financial year and thereafter goes away. We would like the President to address this issue of sports for the youth. I am also concerned about the issue of infrastructure. We have only delivered on paper. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for allowing me to contribute.

Let us have the Hon. Member for Murang’a.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. At the outset, I would like to congratulate His Excellency the President for the State of the Nation Address. I appreciate that the Jubilee Government is part of the transition Government because it had to and still is implementing the new Constitution. This Government has had to face many inevitable challenges. I would like Members to appreciate that even as we criticize what the Jubilee Government has done, the people on the ground are also criticizing us Members on what we have not done. The implementation of the new Constitution has been going on smoothly under the Jubilee Government. I would like to commend His Excellency the President and the Government for the great support they have given devolution. In his Address, the President emphasized on what has been devolved 100 per cent such as health. I know a lot of women are very happy because they can now access free maternity in our health facilities. We also know that the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) has been improved and it is now doing commendable work. It is something that has never happened in this nation. Medical equipment has now been distributed to our county hospitals. In my own backyard in Murang’a County we now have a dialysis machine and my people do not have to travel to Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) to line up for treatment. This has provided a big relief to majority of Kenyans. I know this has not only happened in Murang’a County but also in other counties. Indeed, the equipment provided by the national Government in partnership with county governments has been of great help to mwananchi . On the economy of this nation, I would like to say that Rome was not built in one day. We can see the baby steps that our nation is making. I can say that we are progressively headed somewhere. As the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Education, Research and Technology, I am very impressed about what is happening in the education sector. We have a Government that has delivered clean and credible examinations in this nation. This is something that we have been struggling with for very many years. It is something we did not have a solution for but now we can hold our heads high and say we have delivered credible examinations. 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.

Part of the Jubilee’s Government manifesto is about digital literacy. I am proud to say we have managed to implement the issue of laptops in primary schools. My Committee recommended piloting and ensuring that the content is okay and that teachers are well trained. I can see the progress and this has happened because of the good relationship that we have with the Jubilee Government. There is also the issue of senior citizens. This Government is on record as having increased the amount of money that is being given to our senior citizens, orphans and persons with disability. The Government has come in very handy even though the money is not enough. What this House needs to do is to ensure that the amount of money allocated to social protection per year is increased. Some of the policies need to be changed so that a senior citizen who is over 70 years can access this money. We are all here because these people fought for the Independence of this country. They struggled to make this nation better and so it is important that we support them. The issue of reduction of wages is a serious one. Almost half of the money that we raise from taxpayers is going to Recurrent Expenditure. However, Kenyans need to know that even as people complain about the salaries given to Members of Parliament this money still trickles down to them. As from August, this year, the Members of Parliament of the 12th Parliament will have to contend with reduced salaries. The same will pass for the Members of the County Assembly (MCAs). The people vying for these political positions should know we are not here for money but we are here to serve and that is why some of us are fighting to come back. We want to come back and serve this nation and not because of the money that we are paid. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I thank you and congratulate His Excellency the President once more.

Very well. Let us have the Member for Kimilili.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity to add my voice to the President’s Address, which was encouraging. However, we still need a lot of attention to be paid to areas such as security, which is currently in dire need of repair. The police force has let down this country. On what is happening in Baringo, I must congratulate the President for deploying the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to take serious steps and ensure that people in that county are safe and sound. Those people with illegal arms should be disarmed and those arms destroyed. We should not be talking about the state of agriculture in this country. This is because we should be having enough food in this country. We have sufficient agricultural land, but we are yet to take advantage of that. In the current situation, the county governments are supposed to attend to this matter. There are areas where seeds and other agricultural commodities are given to citizens. However, farmers do not get enough civic education and extension services to help them handle the various issues affecting the agriculture sector. 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.

In my county, the Governor has ensured that there is enough seed but the people responsible for giving out the seeds do not do it in the correct way. So, you will find that the farmers are still lacking the various farm inputs and are unable to plant in good time. We need to cushion our farmers so that they are able to harvest sufficient food for our people. That way, we will do away with hunger. Because of the drought in the country, many people did not plant enough food crops. There is shortage of food, and so, we have to import food. This country should be self-sufficient in so far as food security is concerned.

I congratulate my colleagues in this House for the way they have used the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) because we no longer hear of it being misused. Hon. Members have diligently ensured that NG-CDF money is used properly. I want to ask the President to ensure that Members of Parliament are empowered in terms of NG-CDF. This is one of the national Government functions which are felt by the ordinary mwananchi on the ground. The amounts promised have reached the various NG-CDF offices and members of the public appreciate. I would like to ask my colleague, the Chairperson of NG-CDF to ensure that we get the remaining amounts.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Your time is over Hon. Member. Next on my request list is the Member for Turkana Central.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I would like to join my colleagues who have commented on the Presidential Address. There is a saying in Kiswahili that goes “Mgema muuwe lakini haki mpe.” I want to applaud the President for his Address in which he stated the successes and failures of his Government. A good leader always accepts his mistakes and failures and promises to improve.

The President stated his successes in terms of the railway networking, electricity connections, roads and having a stable economy. At the same time, he admitted that his Government has failed in fighting cattle rustling. As pastoralists from Turkana County, we have suffered because of the cattle rustling menace. We have lost many lives. A Government which cannot protect its people is failing. A Government which cannot maintain peace has also no business engaging in international peace keeping in Somalia and Sudan. Peace has to begin at home before going to other countries. He also admitted that unemployment is a menace which has defeated his administration but promised to create more jobs. 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.

The wage bill is another menace in his Government which he needs to address. I applaud him for taking a bold step and telling us that we need to do something about it. I agree with some of the Members who have said we came here to serve our people and not fatten our pockets. However, this work needs money and has a lot of demands from the public.

I want to thank the President for calling upon Kenyans to give space to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to operate as an independent body. We want this year’s elections to be the most peaceful, fair and avoid anything which can bring conflict in this country. We have other arms of the Government which interfere like the Judiciary which has delayed the tender issue. Up to now, the tender has not been awarded and the IEBC is suffering. I do not think the IEBC will meet its target as per the given timetable. I want to tell the courts that as they delay in giving justice to the IEBC, other processes are also being delayed. I thank the IEBC for refusing to hold Jubilee party primary nominations. We want them to be independent and handle the general elections. It should not be associated with other failures. I also commend the President for his commitment to champion devolution. Turkana County is one of its beneficiaries and we want him to continue supporting devolution. Finally, I want to appeal to the President that if he wants the votes in Turkana County, he should not sign the Bill. He should let the percentage given to the county and community where the oil is to remain. If he does that, Turkana County will give him votes. Thank you.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Before I give the next Member a chance, allow me to appreciate and welcome the following schools. In the Public Gallery, we have Kambi Mawe Secondary School in Makueni Constituency, Makueni County; and Keeru Secondary School from Imenti Central Constituency, Meru County. They are all welcome to watch the proceedings of the House. The Member for Nyandarua, Hon. Wanjiku Muhia, you have the Floor.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me an opportunity to speak on the Presidential Address. From the outset, the Address was up to standard because much has been achieved by the Jubilee Government. I want to condemn the Members who do not want Kenyans to see the big picture but rather the small picture.

Under the Jubilee Government, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology allowed universities to take over all the polytechnics. You can remember Kenya Polytechnic which has given us many graduates in this country. Mombasa and Kitale polytechnics have been converted to universities because they are entrepreneurial centres which make more money than polytechnics. Currently, almost every constituency is setting up polytechnics. This is a people- driven idea because of lack of plumbers and electricians who offer basic services to the community.

On electricity which is mainly a function of the national Government, our villages are now connected. The Members saying that the President did not talk about famine and other issues are clearly telling Kenyans the 10 per cent, which the Jubilee Government has not 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.

achieved. It has already achieved 90 per cent. It is good to have the Opposition, but they should not stand to oppose everything even what can be seen with naked eyes. We know this is a transition Government which has been in place for the last four years and is operating under a new Constitution. We have two levels of Government and we cannot allow members to ignorantly speak about water in counties and medicine in hospitals. These are elected Members of the National Assembly who should educate Kenyans on the functions of leaders at different levels. We know very well that healthcare and water are functions of county governments. We know very well that sports is a function of county governments. When an elected Member from a certain constituency says that there is no water or medicine in counties--- We know the massive corruption in counties. We should be condemning county governments although they have tried their level best. The cost of this Constitution was never taken care of and as a result, the wage bill has grown to its present size. The President is people-driven because he is calling on all leaders and telling them that come August, 2017, they should sit down, reason together and assist the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) on the way forward. He is not saying that, as the President, he feels the wage bill is a certain amount and we need to reduce it to a specific amount. He is asking us, as leaders and stakeholders of this nation, to come on board and deliberate on the issue. With regard to Huduma Centres, today, we know we can operate using our phones when we are seated right here. As a holder of an affirmative action seat in this National Assembly, I have registered many women and youth groups very easily through Huduma Centres. We have already gone online. As I conclude, we know the President spoke for 80 minutes. For him to touch on all the issues facing this country, we need to then amend the Standing Orders and ask him to address this House for a week. I will not forget to mention the illicit brew which was killing our men and has also been taken care of.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Let us have the Member for Saku, Hon. Ali Rasso.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for this opportunity. I rise to congratulate the President for his Speech to this House. I found that Speech to be inspiring, balanced and fair to the extent that the President was not on a campaign trail but telling Kenyans what his Government has been able to do over four years and what some of the challenges have been. What President Uhuru Kenyatta has done from day one is try to build one nation and one people. Through his Speech, what has come to light is that this is a President not for the rich and influential, but for the ordinary Kenyan people. The Jubilee Administration of President Uhuru Kenyatta has clearly looked beyond the horizon. Their transformation agenda is to make Kenya grow and move fast to catch up with the rest of the world as a business and industrial hub of this region. 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.

One major project of this administration is the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR). We are told that this project is actually ahead of time. It has never happened in this country that projects are completed ahead of time. Once it is completed, it will take us just four hours to Mombasa which will be cheaper than flying. Many Members of Parliament and Committees can take a train ride to save public coffers. One of the reasons why my constituents in Saku will vote for Jubilee in 2017 is because of the conclusion of the Nairobi-Addis Ababa Highway that has taken 50 years to be done. As the Member for Saku who lives 770 Kilometres from the city of Nairobi, it used to take me almost two days to get to Nairobi in 2013 but today it takes me just under eight hours. It is the agenda that we expect of a government that wants to move Kenya a step in the right direction. On the issue of job creation, the country cannot employ everyone in Government. Governments do not create jobs but they create an enabling environment so that investors, entrepreneurs, individuals, companies and institutions can set up shop in Kenya. This enables both white and blue chip companies to invest in Kenya and employ young Kenyans. On saluting the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), as one of the Kenyans who served under KDF in Somalia, the best thing that this Government and the previous Government of Hon. Kibaki did was to put boots on the ground in Somalia. That is why we are safe today. Had we listened to voices that told us to pull out the troops, terrorists would have taken over this country and it would easily collapse. Finally, I want to talk about devolution. For many of us, devolution is like the second independence. Those who have failed us are those ones---

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Let us have the nominated Member, Hon. Sunjeev Birdi. You are not in your normal seating place today.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I would like to add my voice in congratulating the President on the State of the Nation Address. Since I only have five minutes I would like to constrain my points to a few things - matters of fact - that I believe need to be brought to the public eye since most of his Speech has been quoted by many of the previous speakers. I honestly believe that as a nation, we have prospered from 2013 until today. That is a genuine fact. Some Members of Parliament and MCAs might feel that they have not got as much as somebody else has in their areas. But the fact of the matter is that devolution has reached far corners of this country. It is also fair to note that when we talk about insecurity cases in our areas, we should ask who the people on the ground are. It is people like us, Members of Parliament. We are the leaders on the ground. When we complain that not enough has been done, we should know that we are part of the whole process. We should also internalise where exactly we fit. I have heard the Opposition saying many times that this was a big PR exercise. Often in my personal experience since 2013, I have seen that when a person does something, people talk negatively and positively forgetting that there is one person who is leading the process and perhaps that person has a different point of view of achieving what he wants to achieve. We have 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.

to, at least, give credit to the person for taking responsibility and taking the bull by the horns which is what I think our President has done since coming into power in 2013. In 2012, I went to the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) to get a certificate of good conduct. Recently, when I went there, I found out that there has been a very big change, e- Citizen has worked miracles.

A few years ago when the President addressed us and mentioned the e-Citizen portal, I had my reservations. But today, when I see it working, I feel stunned with joy. We are actually doing our job.

I recommend that while we are looking for ways and means of criticising the State of the Nation Address, we should also look at what has been achieved practically in the last few years. Everybody is talking about the wage bill and how it is going to affect our country. I feel, as nominated Members of Parliament we have been empowered enough to go for elective seats. This is what most of us who are nominated should do. Personally, I am going for an elective position because I feel I have been empowered enough. It is time, nominated Members of Parliament held the bull by the horns.

I see my time is up. I thank the President, once again for the State of the Nation Address and I support it. Thank you.

(Ms.) Mbalu): Hon. Nelson Gaichuhie, your microphone had an issue. You will be followed by Hon. Cecilia Ng’etich. Hon. Gaichuhie, Member for Subukia.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me a chance to make a little contribution to the President’s State of the Nation Address. First, the President highlighted the successes he has achieved which I agree with. I remember in the last Parliament, we used to have many problems when it came to police vehicles. As a Member for Subukia Constituency, I remember we only used to have one Land Rover which was always immobile, but currently, as I stand, we have enough vehicles. We have a vehicle for the Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD) and a patrol motor vehicle for the DCI. All these vehicles are serviceable. We no longer have the story of, if you want to get a police vehicle, you have to fuel it. We have also seen an increase in the number of police officers in the stations. Initially, they were very few, but nowadays because of the recruitment that has been done by the Jubilee Government, we have improved security in our country.

I support our armed forces in Somalia. We had a lot of insecurity and even lost a tourist in Lamu to the Al Shabaab . There was also a lot of piracy activities in our waters, but as soon as we sent the Kenya Defence Forces into Somalia, so many things have changed. There is enough security within and without our borders. That is an achievement everybody in this country should agree with. The number or tourists coming into our country has increased. In terms of security, we have made good progress.

The President talked about capping of interest rates on bank loans in passing. Ever since the capping of interest rates on bank loans, and I am the Vice-Chair of the Departmental Committee on Finance, Planning and Trade and we oversee banks, I can tell this House for sure 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.

that people are not getting loans as they used to before we capped the interest rates. This is something we need to review because the number of people who are getting bank loans has decreased because banks are now lending to institutions which are less risky. They are not lending to individuals. That is a fact we should review. Capping interest rates is a populist system that we think is good, but it is not for the economy. This is something we need to review.

We have made a lot of progress electronically. Tomorrow, we are going to launch the E- Akiba where people will now buy Treasury bonds and bills online. This is going to be the first platform in the world where you can buy Treasury bonds using a mobile phone. That is happening in Kenya which is a progress that people should take note of.

On infrastructure, a Member here has said that he initially used to take around three or four days going to Saku, but he can now drive all the 770 kilometres from Nairobi. That is a success. Although, we have not seen tarmac roads in every constituency, I believe that we cannot build roads in one day. Many roads are being launched. Even yesterday, the President launched roads in Nyamira County. I expect a road of about 60 kilometres to be launched in my constituency. That is progress.

We have also seen electrification in homes. Initially, to get Kshs34,000 to install electricity in homes was unimaginable, but today some people get electricity for free. You wake up in the morning and you see officers from Kenya Power Company coming with power tokens to light your home. This is good progress. The Government has really tried.

I also want to add my voice on the exemption of examination fees. As Members of Parliament, we know that very many people used to come to our offices to ask for examination fees. But nowadays, it is a thing of the past. In fact, I am a beneficiary because this year I was supposed to pay examination fees but did not because the Government has already catered for that. That is a success. We are doing quite fine.

When you come to health care, though it is devolved, when the Jubilee Government decided to lease medical equipment, we have had many cancer centres and people do not have to come all the way to Nairobi to queue and spend nights here waiting for dialysis. It is now happening in the counties. That is an achievement. For those people who have---

(Ms.) Mbalu): Hon. Cecilia Ngetich, Member for Bomet.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for this opportunity to also add my voice to the comments made by my colleagues on the State of the Nation Address by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Kenya. From the outset, I wish to congratulate His Excellency the President for the articulate information he provided within the very short time he had to address the nation in this Parliament. The President’s Address touched on all sectors of the economy: the social and political development and of course, he did not forget to mention the challenges such as corruption which is a menace in this country and also the huge wage bill we are really fighting.

Any leadership that comes to power tries to address the three social ills affecting a human being; that is, poverty, ignorance and diseases. The Jubilee Government, under the leadership of 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.

His Excellency the President and his able Deputy President, have actually addressed these issues more than other leaderships we have had in the past. Take, for example poverty. In addressing poverty, of course, you have to look at other issues, for example, improving the infrastructure as one way of tackling poverty. When you improve infrastructure, you create roads where farm produce can easily be taken to the market in time to avoid it rotting.

We have electricity, meaning that people who are in business can actually have a 24-hour economy. That means that with a broad base where businesses are going on, we can tackle poverty because livelihoods can be improved through businesses.

Education is the pillar or key to life. When the Jubilee Government came to power, the first thing it did was to increase the capitation for free primary education and the subsidised secondary education. These were improved. Additionally, there was a taskforce that ensured that fees that is paid by parents came down. Again, the Government, through a Motion by one of our Members, agreed to pay for KCSE and KCPE registration fees, among other issues. A total of 14,045 primary and secondary schools have been connected to electricity; meaning that the standards of education will improve. Initially, they were not able to do remedial classes because of lack of electricity. But this time round, they can do it. On the social part, we have seen women and youth being empowered by the amount of resources that come in through the Women Enterprise Development Fund (WEDF), the Uwezo Fund and Affirmative Action Fund. It is only for those affirmative groups to ensure that once they receive funds, they put them into good use so that they can improve their livelihoods. Just to end with the challenges, on the side of security, it is sad that internal wars are going on. For example, cattle rustling or what is happening in Baringo, et cetera requires collective responsibility. I do not think that, that is something we can point to one person. On the huge wage bill, we could not avoid much because of devolution and increased services. I would like to say that, that can be addressed not only by reducing salaries, but by looking into the bloated staff in the counties. Otherwise, I say congratulations. Next time, maybe, we need to do more on tourism, agriculture and talent promotion. Thank you.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Member for Gichugu.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to make a contribution on the fourth State of the Nation Address by His Excellency the President. At the outset, I would like to congratulate the President for bringing a very balanced and inclusive Speech. I would just mention a few things which are of great concern to me. The first issue I want to address is devolution. When we passed the new Constitution in 2010, there was this feeling that the Constitution was not perfect and 20 per cent was not good enough. The 20 per cent which was bad in the Constitution and still remains manifests itself daily as we go on. When you talk about devolution, to me, it is the way to go. There are two aspects of devolution that we need to consider. One of them is political devolution and the other 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.

one is economic devolution. In terms of economic devolution, it has worked almost 100 per cent. That is because counties in every corner of this country are able to get direct money which they can use for the development of their own people. This has given access to services to the common mwananchi all the way to the lowest echelons of the society. When you come to political devolution, there is something that needs to be done. There is a problem in the 47 counties because in terms of politics and the way they manage themselves, some of them are trying to manage themselves as independent political entities. For the last one month, there has been a bitter exchange between the President and the Governor of Mombasa. That is because the Governor of Mombasa feels that he has enough autonomy to run his county without interference from the national Government. We need to fix this Constitution so that the county governments can have a direct link to the national Government. That is going to increase the level of accountability. The other issue which the President mentioned is about the heavy wage bill. In fact, the President indicated that senior State officers and public officers will be forced to sacrifice part of their money so that it can be used in community projects. As we cut salaries, we need to put into consideration the level of accountability. We may cut those salaries and still have that money being misappropriated and ending up in some people’s pockets. Both the county governments and the national Government need to increase the level of accountability so that the monies that are reduced from public servants, monies that are appropriated for development and those appropriated at county level, go to the intended purposes without corruption. I was happy to listen to the President when he confessed that Kenya requires a new start. Kenya requires a new start in which every Kenyan is captured in the economic web. Every Kenyan should be identified by the economy such that whoever is born and raised in Kenya should have a direct link to the economy so that we can reduce the level of poverty and have everybody living in dignity. The other thing I can say, because my time is coming to an end, is that the President was very emphatic on peaceful elections. The Presidential Address was by the President of the Republic of Kenya, and not the President of Jubilee party. The need to hold a peaceful election cannot be over-emphasized. We need to have peaceful and transparent elections, both at the party nominations and at the national level so that whoever loses does so with dignity and accepts to follow the winner. We need to do that so as to develop our Kenya. With those few remarks, I would like to congratulate the President for other things like the Uwezo Fund, electricity and water connections. The Jubilee Administration has done a good thing. I wish to stop there.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Member for Kipkelion West, Hon. Jackson Rop.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to join my colleagues in thanking the President for delivering a wonderful Presidential Speech. It was well balanced and well-intended. It cuts across every other sector of the economy. I want to thank the President for a job well done through the Jubilee Government. I believe this Government has done wonders. I am lucky to have been born during the late Mzee Jomo 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.

Kenyatta’s regime. I watched him. I was in the Moi’s regime. I also enjoyed the Kibaki regime and now this Government. I can vividly say that the Jubilee Government has done wonders in a record four years. Having electricity in almost all schools in Kenya is not a mean achievement. Not only schools, taking electricity to the villages through the Last Mile Connectivity Programme in every part of the country is a big achievement. The cash transfer system that cuts across all over, though not sufficient, the Jubilee Government has done much. On the education sector, I want to applaud the Government for what it has done. Paying examination fees for both primary and secondary school students is not a mean achievement. This cuts across every part of the country. No zone is left out. This means that this Government means well for all Kenyan citizens. Look at the technical training institutes that have been developed across the country; that will help our boys and girls acquire skills to help in developing or driving the industries that we intend to create by 2030. Our vision cannot be achieved until we have those experts who can run the industries that are being targeted through Vision 2030. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, the Jubilee Government has done wonders in this country. For example, the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) will help this country. Instead of us flying to Mombasa, we will be travelling by rail. We will travel to Mombasa within a short time. We will save the much needed resource that can be translated to other economic activities in this region. The President also talked a lot about the challenges that he is facing in his Government, especially the challenge on unemployment. I know this is an issue that is cutting across every other constituency. We have been facing problems from our youth. They are asking us for employment. There is need to develop a policy that will help this country reduce the unemployment rate. We know that we cannot employ everybody, but we can reduce the unemployed youth. I know the Government has tried to help the youth and women through the

Fund that is in every constituency, but it is upon them to go for the funds. Most of our boys and girls are evasive in taking loans. They fear that their property like land can be sold. If people take the initiative, I know their welfare would improve. Corruption is a terrible thing which is affecting this nation. I heard the Leader of the Majority Party yesterday saying we need leaders who are servants. I am one of the servant leaders. If we can say no to corruption and use the monies that we have budgeted for the intended purpose, we can develop this country. The wage bill is a real threat in this country, but reducing our salaries cannot help. We must think of abolishing some of the commissions that were created through this Constitution. I know the Constitution is very expensive because devolution has come in.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): The Member for Muhoroni.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for recognising me so that I can add my voice on this debate on the President’s Address. I want to term the Address as an elaborate Jubilee public relations exercise which gave us a wide range of 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.

achievements on things that, when you go out there practically, are either non-existent or just being started. I will start with security. It is the cardinal job of any Government in place to secure its citizenry and their property. However, all Members who are present in this House will attest that there is mayhem everywhere. If you visit Baringo, you will wonder why we should take our security agencies or personnel to secure Somali when we have serious security challenges in Kenya. There are some people in Baringo who are exporting foodstuffs before the locals have taken good enough of it. With regard to the economy, anybody who lives in Kenya, save for a few affluent families which are seriously politically-correct individuals in Jubilee Government, is struggling to lay food on the table for their families, including Members of Parliament. The cost of living is so biting that Kenya has become like a supermarket. We are importing goods and stocking them in the supermarkets. We are hardly producing things which we can export, or use in barter trade. There is nothing. The economy is not performing. The infrastructure was done by the Kibaki Government. We must put credit where it belongs. The Kibaki Government or the nusu mkate Government did its best in improving the infrastructure in this country. I do not think the Jubilee Government has done much in improving the infrastructure. If you want to prove me right, five months to the elections, the Head of State and his deputy are behaving as if they are beginning the Government today. They are busy kick- starting infrastructural programmes without even budgetary provisions. We understand that some of them are likely to benefit from the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) kitty which we passed here recently in the Appropriation Bill. We have been waiting for the monies to come to our counties. We were assured on the Floor of this House that the monies passed here would be taken to our regional managers, so that they could fund certain programmes that we would prescribe. I put a formal question to the Leader of the Majority Party. I understand that a huge chunk of our money will go to finance some programmes on the low volume seal roads that did not have budgetary back up. I wonder how my money which is meant for Muhoroni Constituency will benefit the low volume seal roads, which are things that have been tailored to either get votes for Jubilee or finance the Jubilee-friendly constituencies or counties. I need those monies and the roads badly in my constituency. So, I would say there is nothing on infrastructure. The huge wage bill is a matter of concern. We need to do an audit with a tooth-comb and see how much deduction we need in our salaries because a lot of noise has been made about Members of Parliament earning a lot of money. When I was outside the House, I thought there was a lot of money. But when I came in, it was different. It is a vice we need to correct. His Excellency the President and his deputy were Members of this House. They know how much you earn as a Member of Parliament and the burden you carry outside. It is not a story that somebody would tell them. If you tell His Excellency the President and the Deputy President about a Member of Parliament’s life, they know it because they were Members of Parliament. I leave it to their conscience. If they believe what we are earning is so much, we need to have it cushioned. However, even if it were to be cut, we need to do serious check on where the wastage is. The real wastage is in the Government. We sit in Parliament and certain people with titles have four or five vehicles following them as if they will be suspended tomorrow. We see them alive every day. We need to cut those reckless spending and save this country. It is not about the Members of Parliament earning or the poor Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs) who have to go home every day and fund every funeral and put up with people begging all the time. 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.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): You are not on the microphone and your time is over. Member for Shinyalu.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to comment on the President’s Address on the state of the nation. We know who the President is and you could see in his body language that he has good intentions. He seems to mean well. However, when you listen to what he conveyed through the State of the Nation Address, you worry for the President. There are people who are cheating him about the state of the nation. Our Constitution has set a very viable and clear roadmap for consolidation of Kenya as a nation, and it spells out very clearly what we all need to do to consolidate our country. Our country is the best country we can talk about because we do not have another one. Our country enjoys diversity and, therefore, I would expect the President, in his first paragraph or opening remarks, to appreciate that we are a country that is founded on a multicultural platform. With that diversity, we need not just appreciate, but celebrate. I did not see any of this expressed in his Speech. So, is the President properly connected? I think he is not. His connection is skewed to one small corner of the country and he sees what is happening in Kiambu and thinks it is happening in the entire country. That is not the truth. The person who is most disadvantaged by the President’s Speech on the state of the nation is the President himself, because he does not have the truth. I think Departmental Committees need to analyse this Speech. We also need to summon Cabinet Secretaries (CSs) here and other people responsible for the different assignments and areas where the President was talking about. When the President talks about roads and I come from Shinyalu, I get perturbed because the road from Kakamega to Webuye, which was started by Retired President Kibaki, has never been completed. It has not been done even halfway. Ten years down the line, this road has never been done. What are the citizens of Kenya from that area saying about the President’s Speech? The President is being cheated by his lieutenants. Poverty is a serious concern in this country and our Constitution is focussed on dealing with that matter. The President’s Speech should have elaborated and demonstrated the intervention of the Government on how it will deal with sections of this country that are suffering high poverty index. Shinyalu is one of them, where our poverty index is 67 per cent. We are struggling. The President needs to say what he is doing about that. The stories about empowerment, free primary education, youth empowerment, vulnerable groups and stipend to elderly people are just stories. The president did not talk about free primary education. Whom does he want to talk about free primary education? The President needs to be advised that free primary education is very important. It is going to create an enlightened society and, therefore, he needs to have very clear statements to make about this and interventions and roadmaps that he will use to make us realise that. I do not have time. I wish you could give me just one minute to raise this other small concern. The small concern is about the environment.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Your time is over. We cannot discriminate other Members. Next is the Member for Baringo, Hon. Grace Kiptui.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I rise to support the State of the Nation Address by the President last Wednesday. Despite what other people may think, the Speech was well balanced and mature. It gave the picture of our country as it is. 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.

Indeed, when it comes to issues of development, it is quite clear that the leap that the nation has taken since 2013 is not comparable to the past. For example, we have the railway line which we have been told took over 100 years to construct in our country. The only rail that is useful right now is the old one that was put up by the colonial people. We will be proud of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) once it is completed. That is because it has been done under our own regime. Besides, the President touched on job creation. As you know, the standards of unemployment are very high in this country. By addressing issues of job creation, he was giving hope to Kenyans. We know very soon we will not have unemployment at such high levels. Another important point is that our county is the most improved country in the world and it is a preferred destination for tourists and even business people. Those are very good news to hear because we are improving. If we were not improving, then we would be reducing. What is important now is that our country is the most improved one according to World Bank records. Besides that, His Excellency the President also touched on the issue of corruption. One point that stood out very clearly is the Matiang’i exams which were announced in record time and without much of the cheating that has been there in the past. Today, we have genuine exams, which mean that the students who will be joining the universities are the correct number that has passed the exams. This is unlike the past where people used to steal exams and then take courses in the university which they were not even able to complete because they had not, in the first place, passed those exams. We have the issue of electronically connected country. As my colleague had initially stated, when we talk of e-Citizen and so many other terms like iTax, all that makes business transactions to be done very fast and also reduces corruption. In the past, we used to do a lot of cash transfers or transactions where we used to pay money over the counter. However, that now is receding into oblivion. Right now, we are only using electronic methods. In that respect, corruption is minimised. The Last Mile Electricity Connectivity to our schools is also a milestone that we need to applaud the President for ensuring that it is done. When the schools are connected, even the

who live near the schools also benefit. Many people are now getting connected to power and when they get connected to power, they are able to work for long hours and are able to do more than what they ought to have done without electricity. The other one which was really catchy is the one of upgrading our hospitals. In the past, we had only two referral hospitals but, for now, we have about 41.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Let us have the Member for Kajiado East, Hon. Peris Tobiko.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to contribute to the State of the Nation Address by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Kenya. Let me applaud and acknowledge the balanced Speech by the President acknowledging the successes and also the failures or challenges the Jubilee Government has gone through in four-and-a-half years. There are acknowledgeable successes of the Jubilee Government and obvious milestones. The SGR which passes through Nairobi and through my constituency, Kajiado East, 120 kilometres heading to Narok and the other places, is one milestone of the Jubilee Government. The electrification of this country, particularly rural electrification, is another big milestone that we have achieved through the Jubilee Government. For the first time in my 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.

constituency, we have seen street lighting in our town centers particularly Kitengela. Hopefully, it will extend to Isinya. These are works that can be applauded. If we remain focused, there is still a lot to be done. My hope and prayer is that Kenyans will realize that the Jubilee Government started with a lot of challenges. We must acknowledge the fact that two years of Uhuru’s leadership were really taken away by the running around to attend court cases at the International Criminal Court (ICC), which our President and the Deputy President were subjected to. We would not have expected them to perform miracles in two-and-a-half years. Two years were taken by the ICC process, a situation that no leader of this country should ever be subjected to again.

I would, therefore, like to say that His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta really deserves to be given another full undisturbed term to finish the many development projects that he has started.

I will also like to mention what the Jubilee Government must emphasize on, particularly with regard to equity in distribution of resources. Kenyans have become very sensitive. They are aware and sensitive particularly to any tribal inclinations on distribution of resources. In my constituency, we are still looking forward for the start of Isara-Mashuru-Kajiado Road. This is just one of the major roads we thought the Jubilee Government would undertake as a major project in the entire Kajiado County. We also saw that in many constituencies, the National Youth Service (NYS) programme has done a lot to alleviate the problem of unemployment of the youth. In my constituency, this is yet to be done. Even as we acknowledge our successes, we must be careful not to sideline parts of this country. We must be careful not to be seen to have skewed development. I know the President has really tried to support devolution, but our county governments have not done much. I think a lot of resources that have been devolved have been siphoned through corruption. A lot of works have not been done. Town planning and sewerage systems in our towns are still pathetic and there are water problems. In my county, Isinya and Kitengela towns are crying because of water shortage. There are no hospitals, medicine and medical personnel. So, I do not understand where the Kshs25 billion that was supposed to be received by governors has gone.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Your time is up.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Member for Gilgil.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker for giving me this opportunity. At the outset, I rise to support the State of the Nation Address.

Part 51 of the Address says that it is not often that we get the opportunity to assess and report on our own progress as a Government. However, one thing is clear: The Jubilee Administration has a long-term development plan. It has a defined and orderly strategy to protect and promote the interests of our country.

That was what the Address was about. I know it has been branded as a campaign Address, but the Constitution gives the President the opportunity to report on the state of the nation and part of that is what the Government has achieved. Some projects are midway while 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.

others have been completed. I want to congratulate the President for his well-researched Address that covered everything. Since there are quite a lot of things, I just want to mention something to do with devolution. He clearly stated that the Constitution says that 15 per cent of the money should go to the counties. The Jubilee Government has not only done what the Constitution demands, but it has gone far beyond the constitutional requirement in supporting devolution. When we enacted the new Constitution and we are the first generation to actualize it, we were very ambitious. Maybe, it is because of the background that we came from - the skewed developments that have been talked about. Everybody was fearful and wished that we could have a Government all the way down to the village. We have the devolved governments. We have all the monies that the national Government has resolved had devolved. We ended up creating kings. We now have 47 “kings” and recently, you have seen that they think they have come of age and you can see how they are challenging the presidency. When we get to the next Government, we should start re- evaluating the Constitution and then check where we went wrong. We know what has happened to the county governments? Most of those governors, in spite of ---

The governors went on employing even where there were people who were already employed. Recently, there was something doing rounds in social media when we talked about wages. There was a comparison between the Kenyan Government and the State of California. While in Kenya we have a projected population of 47 million, they have 39 million. Our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is 63.4 million, and theirs is 2.8 million. Our size of the Government, both the elected leaders and the State officials is 2,494 and theirs is 127. You can see that gap. Lastly, the people of Gilgil have something to smile, talk about and support the Government of Kenya. We had the Last Mile Connectivity Programme. We had a Cabinet Secretary (CS) in charge of energy come to a mud house and connect electricity. We have tarmac roads and street lighting. We are the beneficiaries of 26 flagship projects. People of Karunga are finally drinking water after 50 years. We have the National Youth Service and we have savings of Kshs37 million.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): The Member for Turkana East.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to add my voice to the debate on the Speech by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Kenya. I want to start by the comments given by some of my colleagues on the general development in this country. They claim that some areas in this country have no development, or what the President gave was just a great lie. I will challenge this by saying that Rome was not built in a day. The President gave an overview of all developments done in all the areas in this country. If, for example, in my constituency I have not received development “A”, I might be having development “B”. I want to urge my colleagues that it is not that unless something is done to an area that is the time this Speech can be said to be a good speech. We need to give credit where it is due and we appreciate what the Government has done for the last three years. 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.

On the issue of some people claiming that this is the time the Government or the President can use going round giving projects and all that, I think we need also to agree. That is why in every financial year, we approve a budget in this House. The reason we pass the budget is to allocate money to projects yearly. On the projects done this year, the President is launching them in some areas and leaving out others, but this does not mean it is because of elections. It is just what has been planned to be done this financial year. And we need to agree with it. It is not the issue of elections. What of those projects which have been done for all those years before this election year? We need to appreciate what the Government is doing. When we talk about drought, I come from an area where it is taking away everything, without excluding human beings. I thank the President because he showed concern that his Government will address the issue of drought through livestock off-take programme, cash transfers, relief food and water provision. That is the Government we say is there for the people. And we appreciate what they are doing. On insecurity in the North Rift, the President mentioned that his Government is committed to dealing with those people who are terrorizing others in the North Rift. That is a good move. We want the Government to have that commitment and make sure that the people who are terrorizing other people in the North Rift are dealt with. With those few remarks, I support this Speech.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): The Member for Kisauni, Hon. Rashid Juma.

Ahsante sana Mhe. Naibu Spika wa Muda kwa kunipa fursa hii kuchangia Hotuba ya Mhe. Rais. Kwa kweli, taifa nzima lilikuwa linatarajia mengi kutoka kwa kinywa cha Mhe. Rais kuliko hata yale ambayo aliyazungumza. Kwanza, Wakenya walikuwa wanataka yeye kama Amiri Jeshi Mkuu atueleze hali halisi ilioko nchini Somalia ambako vijana wetu wa kike na wa kiume katika sare rasmi wanapoteza maisha yao. Pia, tulikuwa tunatarajia atakuja kuzungumzia idadi ya wanajeshi waliopoteza maisha yao kule ni wangapi, na wale ambao wameachwa bila waume wao wanasaidiwa namna gani. Vile vile, tulikuwa tunatarajia atueleze ameelekea vipi na Wizara ya Mambo ya Nje kuhusu suala ambalo Wabunge wa Bunge la Somalia wakati fulani walipitisha, kuwa hawataki wanajeshi ya Kenya wawe kule. Kwa hivyo, tulitaka pia atueleze Wizara yake imekaa na wale Wabunge wa taifa la Somalia na atueleze sasa wamefikia mpango gani na wamekubali wanajeshi wetu wafanye nini. Bila hivyo, sisi tunafikiria kama Wakenya kwamba kulingana na vile Wabunge walikataa Jeshi la Kenya kuwa kule, wao ndio wanafanya mipango wanajeshi wetu wavamiwe katika makambi yao. Kwa hivyo, sisi tunategemea kwamba wanajeshi wetu wataendelea kupoteza maisha yao ikiwa Serikali haitakuwa na makini kufuatia suala hilo.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Order, Hon. Rashid Juma! There is a point of order by Hon. Peter Mwangi.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. With all due respect to my friend here, I just want to alert you that there is no quorum in the House according to Standing Order No. 95. 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.

Mhe. Naibu Spika wa Muda, tukizungumzia habari ya stima ambayo Mhe. Rais alizungumzia, sasa shule nyingi zinakatiwa stima, zinakuwa kwa giza. Anasema kwamba yeye ameweka stima lakini shule nyingi zimeshindwa kulipa gharama ya stima. Shule nyingi zimerudi gizani. Hapo hajafuatilizia kujua hali halisi ilivyo. Akizungumzia kuhusu suala la barabara, sisi kwetu Mombasa tunasema, hata kama watu wanaona ni uchungu, hakuna barabara hata kilomita moja ama mbili ambayo imejengwa na pesa ambazo tunalipa kama kodi. Barabara zinajengwa kule karibu zote ni zile ambazo tunapata misaada na mikopo kutoka Benki ya Dunia ama Uingereza. Sasa, hapo ndio anasema ametengeneza barabara lakini kwetu kaunti ya Mombasa hatuoni. Hata mimi wakati moja tulikaa na Mhe Rais na Naibu wake tukazungumzia barabara ya Mwakirunge. Hata mimi katika pesa zangu za NG-CDF nilitaka kuanza kutengeza nusunusu wakaniambia, “Usitengeneze. Tutatengeneza sisi kama Serikali kuu.” Hakuna kitu ambacho wamefanya. Kwa hivyo, sioni kama amezungumzia mambo ya maana sana. Kuhusu reli, alisema tarehe moja Juni twende tukapande reli tukuje. Reli ile ni kuukuu. Ile ni reli ambayo ni second-hand, sio ile wananchi walikuwa wanataka - ile ya kuenda mbio. Ile ni kama ya zamani tu imepakwa rangi.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Hon. Members, Hon. Peter Mwangi rose on a point of order to alert the Speaker of the lack of quorum in the House. He was in order. So, I order the Quorum Bell to be rung for 10 minutes.

Order, Hon. Wamunyinyi! We are in the House. The Member is in order. He has done what the Standing Orders allow us to do.

(Hon. (Ms.) Mbalu): Order, Members! Following the expiry of 10 minutes of ringing the Quorum Bell and pursuant to Standing Order No.35 (a), we have not raised the requisite number. Hon. Members, the time being 12.40 p.m., this House stands adjourned until this afternoon at 2.30 p.m.

The House rose at 12.40 p.m.

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.