Let us determine the quorum.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we have 21 Senators in the House. Therefore, we have a quorum.

Okay. Let us proceed with the business on the Order Paper.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to lay on the Table of this House the petition by the nurses and clinical officers for the devolution of the responsibility for personnel emoluments to county governments as requested by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale on 24th July, 2013. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Standing Committee on Health, Labour and Social Welfare was constituted on Thursday, 25th April, 2013 during the first session of the Eleventh Parliament pursuant to provisions of Standing Order No.117. The Committee executes its mandates in accordance with the provisions of Standing Order No. 206 and the Second Schedule from which it draws its mandate. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Standing Committee Members are as follows:- Sen. (Dr.) Kuti - Chairman The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Hon. Senators, could we, please, consult in lower tones. You can consult, but do it in a manner that the Member can be heard.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. (ii) The Transition Authority (TA) brokered the arrangement for personal emoluments; that they will be retained at the national level for a minimum of six months or until the counties develop systems to handle payroll issues. The TA will ensure that capacity to manage payment of emoluments and to supervise delivery of health services is developed at the counties within the transition period. The Ministry of Health will pay emoluments to health workers up to December, 2013. (iii) Individual counties will be in charge of their own health workforce. The Committee adopted submission of the petition from the Cabinet Secretary for Health with minor amendments arising from the concerns that the devolution of staff The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. This was my petition. The doctors and nurses petitioned this Senate through me and I want to thank---

Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, I wish to refer you to Standing Order No. 224(2). A petitioner brought a petition through you, I committed it to the relevant Committee and a report has been brought. The Standing Order No. 224(2) says clearly that no debate in relation to the report shall be allowed. So, the report has been laid on the Table. So, no debate or report shall be allowed, but the Speaker may in exceptional circumstances allow comments or observations in relation to the petition for not more than 20 minutes. So, it is not a right. The next thing that will happen within 15 days is that the report will be send to the petitioner. So, I have no application before me, for anybody to make any comments on the report of the Committee.

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. In accordance with that Standing Order which allows that we make a comment, I want to The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, do you wish to make any comments on what Sen. (Dr.) Kuti has said?

Yes, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Okay, but you cannot debate. So, you should make an application that you wish to comment on the report of the petition and then state the exceptional circumstances; then I have to make a decision on whether or not to allow debate on it.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the exceptional circumstances are that the Chair of the Committee has given a ceiling of six months and I want to be allowed to make a comment in view of that ceiling.

Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, because you are the one who brought the petition, I will allow you five minutes to make a comment on it.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, thank you so much. This is such a critical issue. I am glad that the Chairman is also a doctor of medicine like me, although he is my junior. Given that the Government has given a ceiling of six months, I would like the assurance from the Chairman of the Committee that the same Government, if they find that within six months, various counties or all the counties are not able to meet this particular requirement, they would give an extension. Otherwise, we run a real risk of all doctors and all nurses preferring to work in counties like Nairobi, Nakuru, Mombasa, Kakamega and Kiambu and the other far-flung counties would run into real problems. I thank the Chair and I would like that reassurance.

Sen. (Dr.) Kuti, would you like to give a response to that very briefly?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it looks like my colleague in medicine did not listen to what I said. In fact, the provision has been given by the TA that until December, 2013, emoluments will be coming from the national Treasury. After that, it is those counties that have put in place the capacity to manage payrolls that will be devolved the functions of managing the payrolls of their health staff. After evaluation, for those counties which will not have come up with that, the services and emoluments will be coming from the national Government. So, it will not be a one off situation.

Hon. Senators, I assume there is nobody else who wishes to comment on that issue, so we proceed to the next order.

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Before we leave this particular order, last week, the Chair of the Committee on Agriculture, Land and Natural Resources told the Senate that he was going to respond on the important issue of COMESA safeguard measures that are currently protecting sugar farming in the sugar zones of the country. He was responding to a request for a Statement which I had raised three months ago. Today is the last day of the week--- The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Are we at the correct position? We are now dealing with petitions.

Are we not on Statements?

We are not.

With due respect, I withdraw.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to give notice of Motion to the Department of Devolution and Planning. THAT, concerned that currently, Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs) and members of the County Public Service Boards are not adequately remunerated resulting in demoralization and disillusionment amongst the MCAs and the inability of county public service boards to attract and retain qualified personnel; concerned further that consultation with the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) on the matter has failed to yield any concession; aware that all county assemblies have, for a second time, adjourned indefinitely in order to press for improved terms; concerned that the trend will have adverse effects on devolution and service delivery in counties as envisaged in Article 174 of the Constitution; the Senate calls upon SRC to speed up the process of job evaluation for MCAs and Members of the County Public Service Boards to ensure that adequate remuneration and other terms of service are offered to them.

(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise to issue a Statement on the Business of the Senate for the week commencing 1st October, 2013 pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order No.43(2). Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, hon. Senators, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order No. 43(2), this is to present the Senate Business for the coming week:- Tuesday, 1st October, 2013, the Rules and Business Committee (RBC) will meet at 12.00 p.m. to schedule business for the Senate for the week commencing 1st October, The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Thank you for the indulgence. The Statement that has just been made by the Senate Majority Leader brings to light something that is starting to disturb me. The business that goes on in the RBC, how much do you try to pursue the various submissions that Members of this Senate have made? I have made submissions for three Bills; we have the Bill on the Flags and Emblems which has gone through the First Reading, but we are yet to hear when it will go through the Second Reading. I have a Bill on the seat of county governments. I also have another Bill on the amendment of the Political Parties Act, in respect of funding to political parties. It is important that as we tackle these important Motions, the RBC, gives us also an opportunity for us to move on to the next level of dealing with Bills so that they can become Acts of Parliament of the Senate of the Republic of Kenya.

Do you want to respond?

(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, thank you because the point of order was raised specifically with regard to the Statement that was made by the Senate Majority Leader. I want to say that in accordance with the Standing Orders, the prioritization of business is the reserve of the RBC collectively as opposed to any particular person. It is for that reason that this is a Committee that is bipartisan and all parties are included just to make sure that no side is disadvantaged. I want to agree with the Senator for Kakamega County in the sense that there has been a bit of slow movement, especially with regard to Bills. Regarding the first Bill that he mentioned; the National Flags and Emblems (Amendment) Bill, to the best of my The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, with all respect to the Chair and to the Senate Majority Leader, I am concerned with his Statement. Would I be in order to seek further clarification because his statement implies that the RBC is unable to prioritize Business in this House?

Can we, first of all, dispose of Sen. (Dr.) Machage’s point of order?

(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, with all due respect to the Senator for Migori County, I did not say that the RBC was unable to prioritize. I said two things; one, the mandate to determine which Business comes to the Floor of the House is given to the RBC, which is bipartisan and all parties are represented therein. But the second point I made is that, perhaps, we need some clarification in terms of the Standing Orders and practices as to whether there is a way in which people, parties or individual Senators who have submitted Business for consideration can petition where, for example, it is in their opinion that there is a delay of some of these things. But at the moment, I am not aware whether there is any requirement on the RBC to prioritize Business using any known criteria. I think in this time when we The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Order, hon. Members! We must bring this matter to a close. I will allow the last point of order by Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale; let it be short, please.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Indeed, I want to thank the Senate Leader of the Majority who is my junior in age and experience in legislative matters---

Is that relevant to your point of order?

Yes, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. It is relevant to this extent; that in the Tenth Parliament, the House Business Committee (HBC) was a preserve of the Executive. But with benefit of hindsight, we then amended the standing orders so that Members of the Opposition would have representation on the HBC, which has become in this particular Senate, the RBC. The reason was that Members of that Committee from the Executive were only fast-tracking Government Business and ignoring private Members’ Business. So, the reason we have Members of the Opposition on this Committee today, with all due respect to the Senate Leader of Majority, is so as to be sensitive to private Members Motions. Therefore, it would be wrong for the Senate Majority Leader to mislead this House and the nation that a Motion can take precedence to a Bill. The Senate and the National Assembly were deliberately formed for legislation. It is the Bill that will give life to new Acts of Parliament. Therefore, if the RBC is not giving precedence to Bills, it means, with all due respect, that the RBC is sleeping on the job. Bring the Bills; we want to enact laws.

I do not want this to become argumentative because that was not a point of order in the first instance; that was an argument. We can bring this matter to a close and proceed to other Business. We must move on, on these issues. What is it, Sen. (Prof.) Kithure?

(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. First, Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale is my senior in age, but he is my junior in this House. That position must be reaffirmed all the time. Secondly, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I did not at any point say that Motions should supersede Bills. In fact, I said on the contrary; I said that Bills should be prioritized. Lastly, in terms of the way forward, the most important thing is what solutions we are offering. I speak now as just one of the Members of the RBC. Going forward, I think the secretariat and the Clerk should even be able to disclose to Members ahead of time what Motions and Bills have been submitted. Currently, we go there and we just get a file of what the Speaker has determined. So, that is why I said there is a way in which we can The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Next Order. Are we still on Statements? Yes, what is it, Sen. Billow Kerrow? MILITIA ATTACK ON GOVERNMENT OFFICES IN MANDERA TOWN

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I seek a Statement from the Chair of the Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations on an incident that happened last night. Last night at around 2.30 a.m., there was an attack on an Administration Police (AP) and District Officer’s (DOs) Headquarters in Mandera Town by a heavily armed militia, where they used heavy artillery to destroy the entire DOs office, which was completely demolished. The administration chief’s office was also demolished, one AP officer was killed and four of them were badly injured. Up to seven vehicles that were packed in the compound of that office were also destroyed completely. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, that is right in the heart of the township. This is not the first incident in the last three months. This is the fifth incident. You will remember that only two months ago, they also attacked the police canteen in the police lines in Mandera Police Station where they killed somebody. Since then, there have been several attacks on AP offices. The road between Arabia and Mandera Town has completely been taken over by militia from across the border. Therefore, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I seek a Statement from the Chairman of the Committee on the following areas. (1) What action has the Government taken since this incident and, in particular, whether the Government has arrested any suspect with regards to this and the previous incidents? (2) Whether this incident is linked to the terror attack at Westgate Mall because of the fact that at the same time last night, there was also an attack in Wajir, in which some people were also killed. The suspected bandits are people we believe are part of the AlShabaab who are coming across the border in Somalia. (3) Lastly, if the hon. Senator can also give us the measures that the Government will put in place to deal with the deteriorating security situation in Mandera and those regions in particular because of these escalated attacks by this group. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Sen. Yusuf Haji, this Statement is directed to you. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Indeed, my sympathies to the people of Mandera and Wajir counties who went through this last night. But could the Chairman also further come with an answer that will confirm whether the National Intelligence Service (NIS) gave them prior intelligence on the---

Order, Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale! Are you supplementing the statement sought by Sen. Billow?

Yes, I am, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Is that a point of order, Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir---

Order! I think we need to do things correctly because Sen. Billow gave thought to the Statement he is seeking. I am sure he knows exactly what it is he wants to do. So, what I would suggest you to do is that you should wait until that Statement is given and then you can make supplementary comments on it.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. With due respect and, please, for your indulgence, I was requesting in advance that he comes with more information on this very critical issue because it is already in the public domain that even at the Westgate, the NIS had already given intelligence. So, we want to be sure that in the instance of Wajir and Mandera incidents, the NIS had given intelligence and the police, once again, slept on the job. They did not take action. He should come up with that information because it is important.

But what I said still stands; that you are now raising supplementary issues. Sen. Haji, can you, please, tell us when you will give the Statement?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, while I send my condolences and sympathy to the people of Mandera and Wajir couunties, I want to state that, as we all know, AlShabaab had vowed that they were going to revenge against Kenya. My suspicion is that their raid in Kenya was outside the sector which is being looked after by the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF). Maybe when I am going to give the answer on Tuesday, next week, I will try to address that issue also because I very strongly feel that the KDF can go and finish these people. However, because it is not in their sector, they are not able to go to Mandera, Wajir and other places. So, we will see how we can go about this in order to put these things to an end.

Very well! Tuesday, next week. Sen. Billow Kerrow, are you seeking another Statement? The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, yes; there is an answer to a previous statement sought by the Senator for West Pokot that I wanted to give.

Okay; let us start with Sen. (Prof.) Anyang’-Nyong’o first. INSECURITY ALONG THE BORDER OF NANDI/KISUMU COUNTIES

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, like my colleague, Sen. Billow Kerrow, I stand to seek a Statement from the Chairman in charge of National Security and Foreign Relations regarding incidents of insecurity along the Nandi/Kisumu County border in the area where we find Songo, Chemelil and Kopere residential and farming places. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, over the last couple of months, there have been skirmishes in this border area where heads of cattle have been raided; sometimes both ways, and lives have been lost. At least, four people were killed not too long ago and no investigation has been done to establish who did it. These skirmishes have continued. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to know:- (1) What action the Government is taking to use Government security agencies such as the Anti-Stock Theft Unit (ASTU) and the AP to reinforce the work does by the regular police, who have been overwhelmed; to ensure that peace and security exists in the area. (2) Whether the Government can give us an updated report on those who have been killed and the cattle stolen? What compensation can be given to those adversely affected? (3) What investigations have been done to establish those who have been killed and the safety of their families? And, finally, (4) To what extent the Government is taking action to ensure that my neighbour, Sen. Sang, myself and other leaders can sit together at this border so that there can be an understanding of a lasting peace between these two communities, which for a long time have lived peacefully together? Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Sen. Billow Kerow, first of all, for Senator---

That is also directed at Sen. Yusuf Haji. Can you, first of all, respond and tell us when you will give us that Statement?

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I will try to give this Statement on Thursday. But in the meantime, I want to appeal, as my brother, Sen. (Prof.) Anyang’Nyong’o, is saying; The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Very well! Thursday it is. Proceed, Sen. Billow. IMPLEMENTATION STATUS OF VISION 2030

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. On Thursday, 11th July, 2013, Sen. (Prof.) John Lonyangapuo of West Pokot County requested for a statement relating to the implementation status of Vision 2030 as follows. He wanted to know the implementation progress of Vision 2030, the gains achieved so far, noting that the Medium Term Plan (MTP) has ended, the plans for the future and whether the Government was committed to its implementation or whether it would be revised. The response we obtained from the Ministry of Devolution and Planning is as follows. Vision 2030 is the country’s long term development blueprint that aims to transform Kenya into a newly industrialized, globally competitive and prosperous middle income nation with a high quality of life to all its citizens by 2030. Vision 2030 is being implemented through a series of successive five year Medium Term Plans (MTPs). The first MTP should have been achieved between 2008/2012. With regard to the first MTP period, the Government has published four annual progress reports on its implementation. This Financial Year, 2013/2014, the Government will prepare an end term progress report on the implementation of the first MTP. The first MTP of 2008/2012 of Vision 2030 made many considerable achievements including:- (a) In the initial period of the MTP, a number of projects aimed at national healing and reconciliation following the post election violence were implemented. (b) Enrolment in early childhood increased by 40 per cent from between 1.7 million to 2 million in 2008 to 2.4 million in 2012. (c) The transition rate from primary to secondary education increased from 64 per cent to 77 per cent by 2012. (d) The number of students enrolling for university education increased by 103 per cent from 118,239 in 2008 to 240,551 in 2012. (e) A total of 2,200 kilometres of road were constructed during this MTP exceeding the target of 1,500 kilometres. (f) The free undersea sub marine fibre optic networks linking Kenya to the global internet networks were completed, including 5,500 kilometres of terrestrial fibre optic network. (g) The total installed capacity for generation of electricity increased by 22 per cent. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I stand to thank my colleague and the Government for the response that has been given. However, there are some aspects that did not come out clearly, especially with regard to the first medium term plan which was supposed to be for five years and which ended last year. In Vision 2030, Industrialisation was supposed to be the key driver if we were to move from a Third World Country to a Middle Income Economy by 2030. Some key development agendas were supposed to have been done. For example, agro-based industries were supposed to be set up in Kisumu, Eldoret and Nakuru within the first five years. I did not hear that from the report. On the contrary, some industries have closed in Eldoret, for example, Corn Products Kenya Limited (CPC) which was a very huge employer and consumer of farm products. It no longer works. Some products are not also used, for example, Rupa in Eldoret among others. The situation is the same in Nakuru. There was supposed to be a huge retail building in Kiambu--- The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

What clarification are you seeking?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I seek to know why the targets envisaged were not achieved. Lastly, now that we have counties operating under a devolved system of Government, I had asked whether there are plans to have 47 small units of the Vision 2030, so that these issues are addressed and, in the process, ensure that the Vision is anchored in every county.

Thank you Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. When I heard the Chairman talk about enrolment in primary schools and other social issues, I thought that he was talking about the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Of course, the MDGs are part of the bigger Vision 2030. However, I did not hear him mention in the first MTP which ended in 2012, what we achieved in relation to what we intended to achieve by 10 per cent, 20 per cent or 30 per cent. It is only then that we can know that we are making progress. He mentioned, of course, the railway which has not even commenced. He also talked about LAPPSET which is still a vision, among other things. However, there are many flagship projects which should have been flagged off as already complete by 2012. So, to what extent can we say we have achieved what we set out to achieve?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Senator for West Pokot County sought clarification on the industries. I agree with him that in the economic pillar, manufacturing or industrial development is among the six sectors targeted. The other five include; tourism, agriculture and so forth. Vision 2030 focuses on the long term development of all these sectors. Basically, the key ingredients that go into these sectors are what have been focused on. For example, industrial development is not about addressing whether a particular factory is running, has been shut down or is still operating. This is a question of developing the human capacity required for industrial take off. I think the Government has put in a lot of focus especially in the area of setting up technical and vocational institutions. Forty-five of them have been put up across the country to try and develop up to one million artisans who can participate in the industrial development of this country. The second major issue in industrial development is how to be globally competitive in terms of the cost of production. The focus has been to try and develop energy so as to try and bring down the cost of energy. This focuses on infrastructure so that roads and other infrastructure are developed so that the cost of production comes down and, industries and factories in this country become globally competitive. I agree that specific industries have been facing challenges which are largely in the areas of inputs and international competition which has affected the development of the specific industries. That is the focus in terms of building the foundation for industrial development which is still the focus of the Vision. The second point he raised was whether Vision 2030 can be fabricated in the 47 counties. That will be the decision of the respective county governments. I am sure each county government is mandated, by law, to develop their own development plans and The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Jnr.)

Order, Senators! Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Junior has sought two Statements. Of course, it would have been one by one, but that was his Maiden Speech also. So, it was not in my place to want to interrupt him. I want to congratulate you, once again, on your election. Chairperson of the Committee on Agriculture, Land and Natural Resources, when can we have an answer to the first question? Senate Majority Leader, the Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture, Land and Natural Resources is not here. Maybe you can help us to know when Sen. Mutula Kilonzo Junior will get his answer.

(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): In two weeks, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Is that okay, Senator?

Yes, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Thank you. He has sought the Statement from the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Energy, Roads and Transportation. Is he here? The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki): Two weeks also, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Is that fine, Senator?

Yes, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. STATUS OF THE OLDER PERSONS CASH TRANSFER PROGRAMME

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I stand to give a Statement, as sought by the distinguished Senator for Pokot, Sen. (Prof.) Lonyangapuo. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in his Statement, he sought to know the progress of the cash transfer to the elderly people. In particular, he wanted to know when the full rollout will happen. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I wish to answer as follows. The Older Persons Cash Transfer Programme was initiated in the Financial Year 2006/2007, as a social protection strategy in Kenya. In 2007, it started in three districts, Busia, Nyando and Thika as a pilot project. It covered 100 households per district and Kshs1,000 was paid to each household. The programme targeted older persons with disabilities and those with deteriorating health conditions. The Government allocated about Kshs4 million towards that pilot programme. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in 2009, the Government gave additional funding of Kshs550 million and it was scaled up to cover 44 districts. The transfer was increased from Kshs1,000 per beneficiary to Kshs1,500. Each implementing district targeted about 750 older persons of 65 years and above. In Financial Year 2010/2011, the Older Persons Cash Transfer Programme got an allocation of about Kshs530 million, which was increased to Kshs1 billion in the Financial Year 2011/2012. At this point, the programme was scaled up to cover the 210 constituencies, with each constituency targeting 23 households. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in the Financial Year 2012/2013, the allocation was further increased to Kshs1.5 billion. This prompted targeting of an additional 150 beneficiary households per constituency. In the current year, 2013/2014, the allocation is now Kshs2.85 billion. The amount per beneficiary has remained at Kshs2,000 per month and is disbursed monthly through the Postal Corporation of Kenya. Currently, the programme is targeting the approach of using the constituency as the geographical and administrative entry point for the identification of beneficiaries. In this regard, the Older Persons Cash Transfer Programme now covers 290 constituencies in this country. The number of beneficiaries ranges at a minimum of 173 to 750 households per constituency. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the mainstreaming and sustainability measures in place to support the Older Persons Cash Transfer Programme are two-fold. One is the policy level intervention, through the overall mandate of the ageing held in the department. The The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Sen. (Prof.) Lonyangapuo, this is your Statement. Do you want to seek a clarification?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to thank my colleague for giving us a very detailed presentation. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I do not know whether you are in the same category as me. Anytime I go to the county and hold a meeting, all the old people in that meeting stand and ask: “When will we be paid our stipend that the Government approved?” They show you an example of one of them who gets this money and looks healthier than the rest. I think that this programme is very healthy because it is like we are caring for the people who mattered most when they were young. For this reason, I want to seek more clarification as to when we are rolling out this programme fully in all the constituencies. Sen. (Dr.) Kuti has talked about constituencies. However, I am talking about districts, locations, sub-locations and villages. These are the people who walk with the history of the Republic of Kenya. If we can continue being with them for a long time in this world, the better. Could we know when this can be done, so that I can have a very good answer to tell these citizens whenever I go home?

Sen. (Dr.) Kuti, I am sure that you are noting them down.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I hope that the Chair is listening because this is a very serious matter. Although we are not going to ask the Chairman for the names, would he be able to lay on the Table the Statement, qualifying all what he has said, so that it can be followed? As things are today, it is very difficult to agree with the Statement that the Chairman has just read. This is because in some constituencies, that The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I will go a bit further than my colleague, Sen. G.G Kariuki, and ask whether, indeed, is it not possible to give the names of the actual beneficiaries, constituency by constituency, because they are not many? As my colleague has just said, I have only heard questions, but not met an old man or lady who is actually getting this money and yet, in the report, you will see people from Nyeri, Mukurueini and so on. For the benefit of this House, would it be possible for the Chairman to table the names of the actual beneficiaries, at least, county by county, so that even a chief can be told to check whether people in his area are getting this amount of money? So, if you had tabled sub-location by sub-location, it would be very satisfying.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am of the view that, that is more of fiction than reality. I am not sure whether what we have been given by the Chairman is true because in my county, leave alone the constituency, that programme is not there. Even when I was a Member of Parliament that programme was not there in my constituency. It has never been there. Maybe it exists in some few selected areas. If there is such existence, that programme should be scrapped, because we are made to appear like we are the people who are getting the money and yet, it is not forthcoming. So, the names should be tabled here, by age, so that we can get to know who is supposed to get and who gets it. This is because there could be some corruption which is involved in this aspect. This is something very serious that should be followed up.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, you heard the Chairman say that right now, the Government is disbursing Kshs2.6 billion. By all standards, that is a lot of money. If I were to give an example of Kitui County, that money does not exist. If it does, it is only, perhaps, to a small area. The Ministry has always said that it is a pilot scheme. For how long is this pilot scheme going to go on when our people are sinking in poverty? We want him to tell us when he will lay the list that has been requested on the table so that we can take our pages and go to the counties and go and ascertain whether it is true that these people are receiving this money.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, first, I would like to ask the Chairman to speak to the Cabinet Secretary and his staff to change the name from “older people” because that is not very definitive and say “senior citizens”. That would be a more kind word. However, at least I can confess - but I am not sure whether it is this programme - that in one location in my former Mbita Constituency, there were some old people above 65years in one sub-location who were getting this stipend. Whenever I go to another sub- location they ask me why people from that sub-location are getting and not theirs. When you go to another Constituency, it is also just one sub-location or another. It was The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I want to thank the Government for continuing this programme that was started by the Government of President Kibaki. The Chairman has told us that this programme has been rolled out to all the 290 constituencies. I am appalled because in Kakamega County, this programme does not exist in Nabakholo Consituency, Mumias West Constituency, Ileho Division of Shinyalu Constituency, Idakho North of Ikolomani Constituency and so on and so forth. Could we give the Chairman time to come and lay on the table of the House the exact detailed list of beneficiaries, constituency by constituency, so that we can be sure that this noble programme has now not been subjected to the rock and roll of corruption that exists in Kenya? With the benefit of hindsight, we now know that elements of the former Provincial Administration are used in identifying beneficiaries. Could the Chairman also tell us whether this is the reason some of the beneficiaries are “ghosts” in Ikolomani South, a place called Eregi, where Sen. Kajwang’s wife comes from? There are beneficiaries who actually do not receive the funds. It is important that we do not rush these things so that the proper detail is laid out and we involve the Members of Parliament with the Constituencies Development Fund Committees (CDFC) because they are connected in all the constituencies. We should also involve Members of the County Assemblies in identifying these people, so that the right people benefit.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I appreciate the concerns by distinguished Senators. I think this is a very noble programme. It is true the leaders should be involved and should know whether the targeted people are actually getting this money. With regard to Sen. (Prof.) Lonyangapuo’s question on the full implementation, as I had stated earlier, according to the Statement that I read, Kshs2.685 billion has been disbursed this financial year to 290 constituencies. It is important that the hon. Senators also do further interrogation to find more information. Sometimes this process is undertaken through the Ministry of Social Service---

Sen. (Dr.) Kuti, as the Chairman of the Committee, you have clearly heard the concerns of the Senators and you also represent a county with constituencies. They have raised very legitimate issues. If you think the issues they have raised are legitimate, is it possible for you to comply with the request that the Senators have made? It does appear like not so many people are benefiting.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to, first, address the issues raised so that everybody is aware of what I am required to deliver. First, they requested that I give a full implementation report, how people are identified and the specific names of the beneficiaries per constituency. Sen. Kajwang also suggested that we change the name to “senior citizens”, which I will discuss with the Ministry and also the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

You did not indicate how soon you can give that further enhanced report.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, since this is a countrywide report involving counties, districts, locations and even sub-locations, I will seek ample time; maybe about two months.

Oh no!

Order, hon. Senators! Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale said that we better not rush this issue so that we can get it right and I agree with him. However, on the other hand, this is a very sensitive issue and it is affecting all of us in the country. Since the records are there, although it is a countrywide situation, it is imperative that we get that information in a structured way. It is important for us to know the people benefiting and how they are selected. It is also important to know, when one beneficiary dies, does it go to his or her estate? Does it continue to benefit the household or is it diverted to another deserving person? I think that is very important information. But two months is a long period. Could you try it for one month in the first instance?

Yes, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Thank you very much. We need a very comprehensive report on that issue. The issues which have been raised by the Senators are very important and they affect all of us.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, in the event of death of a beneficiary, I had stated in the Statement that three consecutive stipends are sent and then it is stopped.

Let us have that report in 30 days. We shall appreciate very much. That settles those interventions. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Hon. Senators, before we go to the next Order, I would like to make a brief Statement. As you are aware, the Speaker of the Senate is away on official duty. He will be away for about ten days or so. I am around as the Deputy Speaker, but we have the Chairman’s Panel of two persons; Sen. Ongoro and Sen. Murkomen who are also out of the country. In short, I am alone in this duty in that specific area. I will propose this and I have proposed it before; that it is not feasible that one person can be on the Chair continuously for all the period of the sitting. The Constitution and the Standing Orders are clear. If you look at Standing Order No.18 and also Article 107(2) of the Constitution, they provide for a situation where the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are not available to perform their duties. I am available, but I may want to step out of the Chamber. In that case, we must have somebody who will stand in as a Temporary Speaker, not in the Speaker’s Panel because that has been filled as per the Standing Orders, but somebody who will be a Temporary Speaker for the purposes of that day. We have even done it before. My proposal is that even today we need to elect a Temporary Speaker under Article 107 of the Constitution and under Standing Order No.18, so that in case I have to be out of here, there is no impasse in the House and the business continues. As all of you are aware, there can never be a vacuum in the proceedings of the House. So, we shall do an election of an interim Temporary Speaker who will assist me today. On Tuesday and until the Chairman’s Panel is here again, we shall follow the same procedure. If that is acceptable, the Senate Majority Leader can help us to proceed on that matter.

Sen. Billow Kerrow, is it on the same issue?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am privy to some discussions that the hon. Senator for Migori, being the only Senator with a lot of white hair on his head which is a sign of many years--- We propose that he holds the fort briefly. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

What is it, Sen. (Dr.) Machage?

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I accept.

But as I accept, I would want you to protect me from a very “young boy” in the name of the Senator for Kakamega--- The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Sen. (Dr.) Machage, before you accept---

Order, Sen. (Dr.) Machage! Thank you for the intimation. You are going to tell us who you want to be protected against, but you have to follow the procedure. Hon. Members, Sen. (Dr.) Machage has been proposed and seconded. I will now put the Question.

Yes.

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. Now that Sen. (Dr.) Machage will be acting as the Temporary Speaker, he can now protect himself against Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale.

Thank you, Sen. Kajwang. Sen. (Dr.) Machage, do you want to grace your position or are you satisfied?

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is an honour to have that delegation by the Members of this House. I accept it. I will not protect myself from Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale because he has silently apologized to me. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir.

Thank you very much. Let us move on to the next Order.

Order, Members! If you look at your Order Paper, you will see that Order No.8 is a Motion by the Senate Leader of the Majority. It is a Motion to do with the relocation of this House from Shimba Hills where we have been operating from to the new Chamber at County Hall. But the Senate Majority Leader has intimated to me and requested me to allow him to suspend this Motion. This is because he would like to do some further consultations on the matter. The issue still stands, but he would like to do some further consultations and I have acceded to his request that we should suspend Motion No.8 for now. We can discuss it next week, as the need shall arise.

So, we can now proceed to the next Order. ADOPTION OF REPORT ON COUNTY GOVERNMENT CASH DISBURSEMENT SCHEDULE FOR FISCAL YEAR 2013/2014 THAT, pursuant to the provisions of Section 17(7) of the Public Finance Management Act, the Senate adopts the report of the Standing Committee on Finance, Commerce and Economic Affairs on the County Government Cash Disbursement Schedule for Fiscal Year 2013/2014.

This is a Motion by the Chairperson of the Finance Committee and Economic Affairs Committee. It is a resumption of debate.

On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. I moved the Motion on behalf of the Chairman at the time. Basically what had happened is that the Motion had been moved and seconded, but the Question had not been proposed as you were leaving.

Take your seat, Sen. Kagwe. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir. This is a legal responsibility of this House and as the Motion says, the law is very clear. Section 17 of the Public Financial Management Act Public Finance Management (PFM) Act as amended by the County Allocation of Revenue Act requires that schedule. If I can actually read Section 7(5), for the benefit of the Members, it says: “Each county government’s allocation shall be transferred to the respective county revenue fund in accordance with the payment schedule gazetted by the Cabinet Secretary in terms of Section 17 of the PFM Act, provided that the Transition Authority has gazetted for transfer the functions to be financed by those allocations.” Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, Section 17 of the PFM Act was also amended by this Act in Section 14 of the Act as follows:- “The national Treasury shall at the beginning of every month and in any event, not later than the 15th day of the commencement of the month, disburse monies to the county governments for the expenditure of the following month.” So, Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the important thing to note here is that whatever county government’s money has been allocated, the Kshs290 billion sharable revenue which has been allocated through this County Allocation of Revenue Act, must be disbursed by the Treasury to the county revenue fund. There has to be a payment schedule. That payment schedule is what is determined by this Act. That, on a monthly basis, the national Treasury must transfer the respective monies for the counties to the county revenue funds. In so doing, therefore, they are required to prepare a schedule that shows how that money will be distributed, county by county, and for which month; and the respective amounts. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, a schedule has been prepared to that effect. That is the schedule that is being tabled before this House. Hon. Members can get copies if it because it has not been attached to the Order Paper. I can see very clearly that what we see on this disbursement schedule, we, as Members of this Committee, are satisfied that it meets the requirements as required by law. What is important here is that the County Allocation of Revenue Act was passed at the end of August. So, the first allocation, therefore, was actually made in the last week of that month. Therefore, the schedule is very clear; it starts from August for 12 months. The money for each of the counties will be spread over 12 months, starting from August this year all the way to June. By June, all the money that has been allocated for each of the counties should have been transferred to the respective county revenue funds. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, if you look at the schedule for the month of August, for example, the amount being transferred is Kshs16,150,000,000 for the 47 counties. If you look at this month, the amount that should have been transferred comes to Kshs16,150,000,000 also. In other words, the money is actually now going. The only thing I can say for sure is that, one, the Act came in a bit late. Second, there is an The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I want to support this Motion and register only one small concern. The Chairman of the Committee could have helped us by analysing these figures a little bit. When you look at each respective county, you do not see why a county is given a particular amount in a particular month. At the very best, when you look at it, this seems to be done arbitrarily. I will give you an example of my own county of Kakamega. We are being told that for the month of August, Kakamega received Kshs553 million which is the equitable share and Kshs26.4 million for level five hospitals. When you move on to the following month, you will see that the same allocation is repeated. In the next month, this figure jumps to Kshs651 million and the level five hospitals amount goes to Kshs31 million. The following month, the figure goes down. The figure goes up and comes down. Is it possible that the Government is spending money arbitrarily? We need to interrogate them next time, in the Committee, so that they justify.

On a point of order, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I think the hon. Member was, probably, not paying attention. The schedule indicates that the disbursement is based on the revenue performance rates of the national Treasury. So, in months when the revenue is high, for instance, October when it will be Kshs19 billion, then the portion for your county will be more. This differs from month to month and I explained why. I went through it.

Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was in when the Chairman was eloquently explaining this point. However, my concern is the issue of corruption. The Government does not collect money, keep it in an account and then spend it. The Government spends as it collects. So, where is this assumption that in the month of October, the Government will collect so much money coming from? These assumptions are the ones that have left opaque areas in our financial management of our The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Sen. Khalwale, do not move away from the Motion. I hope you know that we are discussing the Adoption of a Report of a Committee on County Cash Disbursement. Do not go out of it.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker. Indeed, it was in that context that we do not want to allow county governments to just sit at home waiting for this block cheque from Nairobi and do nothing. We would like to encourage them to raise money. Narok County should be one of the richest counties in this country. It was the bad management from Nairobi that did not allow the potential of Narok to be realised. This is why we must push them, as the Senate, and ensure that our role is not just limited to revenue division and revenue allocation. Finally, now that we have successfully divided revenue, allocated it and are even passing this schedule, I would like to urge my colleagues, Members of the Senate, not to sleep on our laurels. We must go a step further. We must join Members of County Assemblies (MCA) in ensuring that this money does not end up being subjected to devolution of corruption from Nairobi to devolution of corruption at the county governments. We all know that petty corruption has been going on in the counties since time immemorial. It is the grand corruption that takes place in Nairobi that has been missing in the counties. So, if we do not stand up, together with MCAs, to fight corruption in the expenditure of devolved funds, then devolution will fail. We would not like to see this happen. I beg to support.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): You can continue. You had 30 minutes. If you have anything to add, you can continue.

Thank you for that afterthought. Since you are my senior in medicine, I saw you looking at me and I became nervous. Now that you have made me comfortable, I will not continue, but will remember, next year, when I will be a Speaker to---

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Order, Dr. Khalwale!

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. First, I would like to thank the Chairman of the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Economic Affairs for the report they have brought to the House which I think will drive the process of disbursing funds to the counties. I support the Motion from the onset. I also want to use the Floor of the House to issue a warning to those mandated to handle finances. The issue of money is a very risky affair, particularly whether it is at a personal or at a Government level. I, therefore, wish to use the Floor the House to ask that the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Economic Affairs, headed by the Chairman, continues to be alert and the watchdog on behalf of the Senate, where money is concerned in the counties. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the mandate given to this Committee is quite clear to us; that they have the responsibility to do the job that the Chairman has just presented to us. It is important that they have done this job successfully and we now have a Report that we can adopt. This is a credit to the Committee. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Thank you very much, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to make very few remarks on this. First, I want to congratulate you on your election as the Temporary Speaker, today. I am sure that you are equal to the task and I wish you well. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I want to thank the Standing Committee on Finance, Commerce and Economic Affairs for the good work that they are doing. My position is that I would have wished to see more money sent to the counties. Because in the counties, that is where the majority of Kenyans live, that is where the bulk of our challenges lie and I have always believed that we should send more resources to the counties so that they can create a positive impact in helping wananchi to reduce the prevailing poverty levels. Mr. Temporary Speaker, I have noticed from the Schedule here that we are talking about distribution of resources from the month of August all the way to the month of June. That means that July is left out. I do not know whether there is a good explanation for that because we are talking about 11 months when we know that we have 12 months in every financial year. So, I would like to know what happened to the July allocation. At last, we are actualizing devolution. In fact, we have come to the stage where our expectations are now beginning to be fulfilled and the fact that we are now approving this Schedule of disbursement of funds to the counties is sufficient proof that we have now embraced the philosophy of devolution. Now that money has began to flow to the counties on a monthly basis - and I personally support the idea of sending money to the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Thank you for allowing me to support this Report. For sure, I just want to remind the Senate that from the time we were elected to date, wananchi at the ground have been asking what is happening because they have not seen any development taking place. I do believe a lot has been happening; trying to put things in order and for us to pass this Report, we are making a statement that the national Treasury will gazette that Schedule so that everybody knows that in a particular month, this county expects this amount of money. I thank my Committee, and I know that provision of making the disbursements monthly was actually adopted by the Committee. To me, that is one of the best things; that the counties at any one time will not feel that they do not have enough funds. Mine is just to say that this is the time to make sure that the county governors and the county executives plan for the entire period up to next year to make sure that all the development programmes that they had already budgeted for and passed by the respective county assemblies are given priority so that every time the money is disbursed, it is not just in the accounts but they will just find the projects going on and there will be no interruptions. So, if it is procurement, they should make sure that they do a transparent and open procurement. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, just as the other Senators have said, we will not want to see a situation where we only talk about corruption at the national Government and yet in the devolved system, people do not get services in the counties simply because the executive is not transparent. The money should go to whatever use it had been budgeted for. This is now the time the county assemblies will have work in oversighting the utilization of resources. They should be able to know how the projects they had passed in their assemblies are performing. The committees in charge of those particular departments will start to be very busy trying to see to it that those projects are going on. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Thank you very much, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. Like my other colleagues, I also wish you the best of luck in your new position. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, this report is, indeed, good given that the Members of the Committee are known to us and we know them as very thorough people; they did a good job. For them to table such a report, it is not a mean achievement. I would, therefore, first of all, congratulate and wish them luck also as they continue perusing more into this Report. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, sometimes we get lost. When we were here last, Mr. Chairman, you remember we discussed the finances of the counties, and it is like the formula which was used then is differing with what is already tabled here. I remember like, for example, in Kirinyaga, the amount of money which was supposed to be given out from the national Treasury was Kshs2.75 billion but, now, I can get only Kshs2.5 billion. The variance in that figure is yet to be explained so that we can know whether there are some functions which are not yet devolved to the county or whether that money will also be released at an opportune time.

On a point of order, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. Since I am a Member and the Vice-Chairperson of the Committee, maybe, I just need to explain that shortfall you are talking about.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Sen. Mositet, this will be done at the stage where you are replying.

I am much obliged, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir.

What we are discussing is the sharable revenue.

Thank you very much, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. It has also been noted that there is a discrepancy between the figures that were discussed here earlier and the figures that are already tabled here in the Report. The discrepancy is a concern to me and also to others who are curious after looking at the figures. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the amount which has been released is monthly, and this is September. Noting that we have the earlier months, which is April, May, June, July and August, we are yet to be told exactly how the county governments are going to cope with that deficit which is, therefore, three or four months. We are yet to know how the devolved labor force from the national Government to the counties – which I hear, I am told and we have also proved elsewhere that the central Government has also transferred quite a number of people to the counties – and they have also transferred the liabilities The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Sen. Tiole Ndiema.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. I stand to support this Motion. In doing so, I want to say that the system whereby the counties get their allocations on a monthly basis is laudable, especially because the counties do not have any other sources of money to spend if we were to stagger it on the basis of quarters. The counties do not have the facilities to borrow on a short-term basis to even meet the basic expenditures like salaries. So, I want to thank the Committee for agreeing to that system of payment. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, looking at the figures, what we see is that the funds which have been allocated are not adequate, but we have to do with what is there. In some counties, they may have to really spend a lot on payment of salaries, and the little that is left will go to other recurrent expenditure items leaving very little for development. So, in view of the inadequacy of finances, it is incumbent upon the counties to really plan properly from the outset as to how they will spend the money for all the months within that financial year. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the revenue that has been allocated, being inadequate, has to be supported by the revenue that is raised locally within the county. The two go together. I think the Committee should look at ways in which a similar report on how revenue will be generated can be availed to the Senate so that we see how they will manage their expenditure. I have mentioned that salaries will be a major item of expenditure. As we are aware, there is supposed to be an audit to see the level and type of labour we require for the devolved governments. It is important that this exercise is completed at the earliest possible time so that the human element is properly factored. Since resources for expenditure are limited, counties should plan and spend prudently. They should avoid rushing to over commit themselves in contracts which are way beyond their resources as per the Schedule. They should also look at the pending bills or the liabilities which are there. It is very important for the committee to look at the liabilities with a view of ensuring that these resources are protected against claims of pending bills because some pending bills are way beyond these allocations. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Since there is no one else interested in contributing to this Motion, I will call upon the Mover to reply.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Sen. Billow, I thought Sen. Kagwe is the one who moved the Motion and he is the one who should respond.

Mr. Temporary Speaker, this is a report of the Committee on Finance, Commerce and Economic Affairs committee. I was the one who was supposed The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): I will use my discretion as the Speaker under Standing Order No.1 to allow Sen. Billow to reply.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir. You have made a good ruling using the powers conferred on you by the Standing Orders. I want to take this chance to thank all Senators who have contributed to this Motion and given their views. There are a number of issues we have raised and I want to respond to some of them very specifically. I want to draw the attention of Senators to Section 17(7) of the Public Finance Management Act which provides that the national Treasury shall prepare its schedule for cash disbursement in consultation with the Inter- Governmental Budget and Economic Council. We, as the Senate, are required by the Public Finance Management Act to consider our report, but more importantly, to approve the County Governments Cash Disbursement Schedule for the fiscal year 2013/2014. That is the essence of this Motion. Senators have raised a number of pertinent points particularly with regard to accountability by county governments. County governments need to be transparent and to utilise money prudently, avoid wastage and enhance efficiency. All those things are very critical. The issue of corruption with regard to procurement is important. On the issue of revenue collection that Senators have raised, county governments are not only supposed to be dependent on revenue allocated to them. They are also supposed to raise their own revenue. If you look at the budgets of the respective counties, there is revenue from local sources which is factored in. That revenue must be collected and utilized according to the Public Finance Management Act. We are supposed to plan for the monies that will be disbursed by this Schedule plus what they will collect from local sources. In both of them, it is required that they have a monthly inflow budget of how much money is coming from the national Treasury. From the local sources, they should have a schedule of what is budgeted from their resources so that they know what to expect. On that basis, they should then plan their expenditure. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the second thing to note is that this Schedule starts from the month of August, but the financial year starts from July and runs up to June. The County Allocation of Revenue Act, upon which this Schedule is based, came into effect in August, since the Act was passed in late August. So, the money for the month of July has been spread over the rest of the 11 months. So, when you look at how much money, for example, a particular county is supposed to get, instead of dividing it over 12 months, it is divided over 11 months. So it is provided for in this Schedule between the month of August and June next year, so that all the money then must have been released to the counties. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the third thing, which I think is important and Members have raised it, is that the national Treasury is required by law to comply with The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): While still on that point, maybe it is appropriate for you to reply to Sen. Karaba’s question as to why the allocation for his county was reduced by Kshs2 million. Also, reply to Sen. Obure’s question as to why July is not appearing.

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I will respond to both. The point that I am raising here is that the payroll is about Kshs4.5 billion, out of the Kshs16 billion. So, actually, it is not the entire amount. In addition, the Kshs4.5 billion is salaries that the national Government would have paid if it was running this Government. In other words, there is money that has always come from the local authorities, which are now managed by the county governments. That money has always paid for the salaries and payroll requirements of the local authorities that were there. So, there should actually be no significant expenditure on payroll over and above the amounts that are indicated as Kshs4.5 billion per month. So, for the three months, it will be done. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, regarding the questions raised for the month of July, I think I explained earlier. If you look at the schedule, it runs from August to June, which is 11 months. This is because the County Allocation of Revenue Act, on which the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Thank you, Sen. Billow. Indeed, I hope that you are quoting Standing Order No.51 (3), which allows us to defer the putting of the question to the following day. The following day for our purposes is supposed to be Tuesday, but as we have made it a tradition in this House, I will use Standing Order No.1. I will use my discretion and order that the voting be done on Wednesday afternoon.

Next Order!

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, looking at the number of Senators that we have in the House and the time that is remaining, I would like to request that I be allowed to move this Motion--- The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Order, Senator! You have enough time as far as I am concerned. It is only 5.45 p.m. Go on! TRANSFER OF ALL KERRA FUNCTIONS TO COUNTY GOVERNMENTS

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I beg to move the following Motion. THAT, aware that Fourth Schedule of the Constitution assigns the responsibility of construction and operation of national trunk roads to the national Government and that county transport, including county roads are the responsibility of the county governments; acknowledging that the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) is mandated under the Kenya Roads Act (2007) to administer funds for the development, rehabilitation and maintenance of roads in constituencies, which are roads within counties and which fall under Class D category and below; cognizant of the fact that there are already established KeRRA structures in each of Kenya’s 47 counties; the Senate urges the national Government to transfer all functions of KeRRA to the county governments in order to ensure faster and more efficient delivery of services. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, as per the Fourth Schedule of our Constitution, the national Government is mandated to maintain and construct national trunk roads. From my understanding, as an engineer and somebody who has worked for the Civil Service of this country, these are roads which traverse across the country moving from maybe one county to another county or connecting the former provinces which we used to know when we had the eight provinces. Those are roads like the Mombasa Road, the Great North Road which traverses all the way from South Africa, passing through many countries, through Kajiado, Athi River Nairobi, up to Ethiopia. We also have those roads which connect the former districts which are now counties. These are roads which connect, for example, a district like Kajiado to a road connecting Machakos to Makueni or a road serving Thika, Murang’a and Nyeri. These are Class C Roads and Class B roads. Those are the national trunk roads. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, still under the Fourth Schedule, the counties are mandated to do the construction and maintenance of county roads. The county roads, to my understanding, are roads which serve the entire county and those which are within the county. These are roads which connect the market centres and the constituencies. The Class D roads fall under this category. They are 25 metres in width and these are roads you will find serving the constituencies. Currently, constituencies have been transformed into districts. These are roads which are well known by all the leaders. We also have Class E roads which are normally 20 metres in width and they also serve within the constituencies. There are also other Class E roads which connect centres The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Thank you, Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for the opportunity to second this Motion. I want to start by congratulating my friend, the Senator for Kajiado County, for the interest he has taken in issues of infrastructure and particularly the initiative he has taken to bring this Motion here. Roads are very important to us and in fact, the performance of county governments will largely be measured by how many roads they construct and how many roads they will be able to rehabilitate and how effectively they will maintain the entire network of county roads or all those roads falling within their jurisdiction. I say so because a large majority of our counties – in fact, all of our counties throughout the Republic – transportation by road is perhaps the only means available which enables people to earn a livelihood. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, many of our counties are dominated by farmers and farming is the main occupation in the majority of our counties. People go out to the field, they cultivate their land and they produce products. These products must reach the markets in order for farmers to earn something. In order to reach the markets, they need roads. Business people in our respective counties are able to move goods to the markets or to reach places to provide services using roads. They want to visit markets; they want to access and reach markets even beyond the boundaries of their own counties, and all that is done through roads. Movement by wananchi themselves – wananchi themselves become mobile using roads; they have to visit markets, schools, churches; they want to visit their own relatives and even connect with their own friends, and all that movement is facilitated through roads. Therefore, it is right to say that a good road network facilitates mobility and communication on the part of wananchi wherever they live in our counties. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I take the example of my own county, Kisii, which is an economy that very largely depends on small-scale agriculture. Agriculture, therefore, is the mainstay of the economy in my county. Kisii is very heavily populated; we are talking about an average population of 800 to 900 people per square kilometer. Therefore, they have small little farms, and for them to sustain that population there; to enable that population to move around and earn a livelihood, you need roads. In fact, roads are a prerequisite for any meaningful development. Tea and coffee farmers; banana The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Order, Sen. Obure! Your time is up.

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I support the proposal by my friend that the two institutions should work strictly and become answerable to the county governments, even as we use their expertise to link up with the national Government. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I beg to second.

Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, it is a wonderful time for us this evening to contribute to this useful and timely Motion which has been moved by Sen. Mositet. Construction, maintenance, classification and even re-classification of roads is a very important aspect of development in any country which is serious, and I hope Kenya is one of them. What is interesting to note is that we do not know who is in charge of roads development in KeNHA, KeRRA, KURA et cetera. We do not really know what happens because of the poor infrastructure that we continue to witness in the development of the road network in Kenya. I am saying so because I happened to have sought a Ministerial Statement from this House about a road in my county which for the last three to four years has been under construction but has never been completed. Every year, there is some allocation of funds to that road in the Budget, but nothing seems to be happening. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

Thank you Mr. Temporary Speaker. I stand to support this Motion. I would like to thank the Engineer Senator for bringing this important Motion. Road transport is key to any development that we seek to achieve and more specifically in the rural areas. I believe that all of us, while we were campaigning; the major issue that the public wanted us to address was roads. We promised that when we get here and since there is devolution, the roads would be fixed. As I speak, the roads in the counties leave a lot to be desired. In Trans Nzoia County, we are almost harvesting. There have been a lot of rains and we thank God for that. We thank God for the rains and wonder how we will deliver our produce to the markets. We may resort to donkeys and even so, they are not as efficient. Lack of roads translates to poor returns. Whichever trader takes the produce must meet the cost of the produce. Since the buyers know that you are unable to access the market, they lower the market price which subsequently leads to low production and scarcity of food in the country. This also compels us to use our scarce resources to import the same. Our Constitution recognized that there was need to address the issue of roads at two levels. The major national trunk roads should be the responsibility of the national Government while the rural roads should be the responsibility of county governments. That is already in the constitution. We know that previously, efforts had been made to address the same problem which brought about the formation of some authorities including the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA). This was for the same purpose. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.

(Sen. (Dr.) Machage): Sen. Ndiema, you will have five minutes to contribute when the Motion appears next on the Order Paper. It is now 6.30 p.m. It is time for interruption of business. The Senate stands adjourned until, Tuesday, 1st October, 2013 at 2.30 pm. The Senate rose at 6.30 p.m. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate.