Wednesday, 1st April 2026

Serjeant-at-Arms, ring the Quorum Bell.

Hon. Members, we now have quorum to transact business.

Hon. Makali Mulu take your seat.

requirements, operational practices, effectiveness of current legislative oversight mechanisms, handling of public petitions, and/or any gaps in the Standing Orders, and propose recommendations for improvement.

Hon. Members, for good order, all general views or proposed amendments to the Standing Orders should be forwarded to the Procedure and House Rules Committee, through the Office of the Clerk, by way of written submissions. The receipt and collation process should be concluded by 31st July 2026.

I, therefore, encourage you, Hon. Members, to present your views and proposals ahead of this deadline. This will also apply to any other stakeholders and the general public. The Procedure and House Rules Committee is encouraged to undertake a thorough and open-minded examination of all aspects of the Standing Orders, including, among others:

Hon. Members, my second short Communication is a recognition of a delegation from the County Assembly of Bungoma where yours truly comes from.

I wish to introduce to you a delegation from the County Assembly of Bungoma who are seated in the Speaker’s Gallery. The delegation comprises 10 Members of the Assembly’s

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I take this opportunity to welcome Members of the County Assembly (MCA) of Bungoma in the National Assembly. They are on a learning mission at the CPST to identify gaps in their performance and improve their deliberations and service delivery. I join my fellow Members of Parliament from Bungoma in welcoming you. Feel at home and learn as much as you can. I also take this opportunity to welcome the students who are here on a learning mission.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Jack Wamboka.

I also join the queue to welcome our MCAs from Bungoma. I confirm that they are doing a very good job. Some of them are very experienced, Hon. Speaker.

It is important for Members to note that Hon. Majani Balala has been elected about seven times in Bungoma County. He once served as the Mayor of Webuye and is a very seasoned politician. They are doing a good job. Generally, we do not have a lot of noise in Bungoma County. They are doing a good job. We encourage them to learn enough and continue pressing the Governor to render good services in Bungoma County.

Karibuni sana na asanteni kwa kuja.

Hon. Ichung’wah.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Allow me to welcome MCAs from Bungoma County. It is not any other county, but it is where the Speaker of the National Assembly comes from. He also served as a Senator there. The Governor is a former Speaker of the Senate.

As I welcome them, I ask them to take note of your Communication today, particularly on the need to continuously review our Standing Orders. I note that each county assembly has its Standing Orders that are not similar to others. It is good to benchmark on the National Assembly and the Senate Standing Orders and standardise them across county assemblies. In some counties, it is very easy to remove Leader of the Majority Party without reference to sponsoring parties, while it is not easy in others. The same applies to the way they elect their leaders in the county assemblies. Therefore, it good to benchmark the practices of the National Assembly.

I was observing whether Hon. KJ was listening to your Communication. He occasionally raises issues on Departmental Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation, Public Petitions Committee, as well as the Departmental Committee on Health.

Before we went on short recess, there was an issue on a Petition on whether it should be referred to the Public Petitions Committee or the Departmental Committee on Health. Therefore, I invite all of us, especially Chairpersons and Vice-Chairpersons of Committees, to look at things that have made your work difficult during this Parliament, so that we do not have the same problems in the 14th Parliament.

I have in mind the role of the Public Petitions Committee vis-à-vis the role of our Departmental Committees. The Chairpersons of the Departmental Committees should have their work cut out so as to determine which Petitions are handled by the Public Petitions Committee and which ones can be directly committed to the Departmental Committees for consideration.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, Member for Kesses. Contribute for one minute.

Thank you so much, Hon. Speaker. I join my colleagues in welcoming the MCAs of Bungoma. This is a good engagement. The work that the National Assembly does is not different from what county assemblies do.

I single out Hon. Sheila Sifuma who played a critical role during the establishment of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Party in the previous election. She demonstrated how the party’s agenda could be communicated to the people, contributing to the formation of the current Government.

Thank you very much.

Lastly, we will have Hon. Nabii. Hon. Jematiah, pia wewe unataka kuongea? Hon. Nabii, contribute for one minute and then Hon. Jematiah will close.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I also join my colleagues in congratulating the delegation from Bungoma, my neighbours, for taking the initiative to come and learn. Having served in the first County Government, I understand the challenges faced by county assemblies. I urge them to learn on improving accountability mechanisms. Many reports submitted to county assemblies have hidden messages.

I ask the MCAs of Bungoma to utilise their time at the CPST to learn as much as possible and improve their reporting.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Jematiah.

Thank you Hon. Speaker. I also want to join Members in welcoming members of the County Assembly of Bungoma to the Floor of the House. I want to recognise my friend, Sheila, and other members. I urge them to work so hard because Bungoma depends on them. County assemblies have been playing a pivotal role in devolution and Centre for Parliamentary Studies and Training (CPST) partnering with them, is going to help all of us have good governance in the counties and the National Assembly.

I thank them and wish them all the best. Thank you.

Thank you. Next Order.

Let us have the Leader of the Majority Party. Hon. Members, as we deal with Papers, we have the Prime Cabinet Secretary at the back. He will soon come in. He is going to deal with two issues on hardship areas and how they are designated. I do not see Hon. Jared Okello here. That has been his pet subject, but I know all of you have been talking to this. He will also speak to the House and the nation about unlawful recruitment of Kenyans to go out there as mercenaries to fight for foreign legions and armies, which you are aware has been resurfacing here. There are two Questions listed by Hon.

Mwenje and Hon. Oundo but due to agenda at Order 13, I will stay those Questions to another date, so that he finishes with those two issues and any supplementary questions that will follow, then we go to Order 13.

Go ahead, Majority Whip and lay your Papers.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table:

Reports of the Auditor General and Financial Statement for the year ended 30th June 2025 and the certificates therein in respect of—

Chairperson of the Public Petitions Committee, Hon. Karemba.

Thank you Hon. Speaker. I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table:

Reports of the Public Petitions Committee on its consideration of—

Hon. Members, we should commend the new Chairman of Public Petitions Committee, Hon. Karemba. He has laid on the Table a record 15 reports on Public Petitions, something hitherto unknown in this House, in the previous management of that Committee. We should thank you for your industry and your Committee and continue working as hard as you can.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. It is true. The former Chairperson had decided that he was going to sit here permanently but since Hon. Karemba took over, he has disappeared and vacated the space for him. We should look for him to come and sit here.

I thank you. Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table:

The Draft Charter for Kenya Medical Research Institute from the Ministry of Education. I thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Thank you. Next Order.

Hon. Karemba, do you have a notice of Motion?

Yes.

On all of them or on one?

On one.

Go ahead.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion:

THAT, this House adopts the report of the Public Petitions Committee on its consideration of Public Petition No. 14 of 2025 regarding the proposal to amend the Consumer Protection Act to provide for the in duplum rule, laid on the Table of the House on Wednesday, 1st April 2026. Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

When do you bring the rest of the notices?

As soon as they are ready.

Okay. Hon. Members, allow me to acknowledge in the Speaker's Gallery the following: Naramat Junior and Senior School from Kajiado County, North Kajiado Constituency; Kangurwe Primary and Junior School from Mukurweini Constituency, Nyeri County and a delegation of 15 visitors from Suna West Constituency Women Caucus.

On my behalf and on behalf of the House, I welcome all the visitors to the House of Parliament.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I want to appreciate the leadership of the National Assembly for allowing women from Migori County, led by the Deputy Whip of Migori County, Hon. Beatrice Onyancha, who is my area elected Member of County Assembly (MCA) and the three other nominated MCAs, Hon. Beatrice, Hon. Alice and Hon. Anne.

Women play a very important role in the society, especially in development of the society. They stabilise us where there is a problem. They contribute to us being elected. That is why today I decided to bring them here, so that they can appreciate the National Assembly where they brought me and make an informed decision in the next election.

As we move toward the elections, let us encourage the members of the public to elect more women in the positions of leadership so that our leadership space can change. We have realised women are doing better and if they are supported, this country can move from where it is today to the next level.

Thank you so much, Hon. Speaker.

Next Order. Clerk-at-the-Table, leave out Order No. 7, dispose of the First Readings then come back to Order No. 7.

Call out Order No. 7. Hon. Leader of the Majority Party, can you get the Prime Cabinet Secretary (PCS) into the Chamber?

Hon. Martha Wangari.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker for indulging me, given the urgency of this matter.

Hon. Speaker, in pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I wish to request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of Master Faiz Leslie Faraji at Gilgil Hills Academy.

Hon. Speaker, Master Faiz Leslie Faraji was a three-year-old boy from Gilgil Constituency, who died on 27th March 2026 under unclear circumstances at the Gilgil Hills Academy where he was a student in the playgroup class. The school reported the incident at Gilgil Police Station Occurrence Book (OB) No. 36/27/203-2026 at 1359 hours as a case of drowning in the school fishpond.

However, a post-mortem examination conducted in the presence of the family indicated that the child had not inhaled any water thereby casting serious doubt on the reported case of death. This discrepancy has raised concerns and public outrage within and beyond Gilgil Constituency particularly on the credibility of the school's account, the circumstances leading to the child's death, and the apparent lack of accountability to the bereaved family. Consequently, protests have erupted in the area with members of the public demanding justice and transparency. The precarious situation calls for urgent intervention.

It is against this background that I request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security on the following:

Hon. Wangari, do you think that is a matter of education on safety in schools or is it a police matter under security?

Hon. Speaker, I would have thought it would be shared but I would like it to go to the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security because there is an ongoing investigation.

Is it of a criminal nature?

Yes, of a criminal nature.

Hon. Raso, in view of the remarks by the Member, when can you bring a response? Tuesday?

Obliged, Hon. Speaker. As you are indicating, this is a matter touching on education and safety in institutions of learning. Also, the Hon. Member suspects criminal culpability in this case. Next Tuesday.

Next Tuesday. Hon. Melly, you should also look at the broader issue of safety in schools. Especially where young children are involved. Is the Prime Cabinet Secretary (PCS) in the Chamber?

Hon. Mudavadi, welcome to the Chamber. Hon. Members, as I indicated earlier, you have repeatedly raised issues about designation of certain areas of the country as hardship areas. The PCS is here to make a policy statement on the issue. He will also make a policy statement

on unlawful recruitment of Kenyans as mercenaries into foreign legions and armies. Particularly, in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. PCS, you are welcome.

I want to allocate one hour to this segment. We will finish with the PCS by 4.15 p.m. If we deal with the two policy issues quickly, I can allow Hon. Mwenje and Hon. Oundo to ask their questions. PCS, you are welcome.

I take this opportunity to thank you for inviting me to respond to issues raised by

You can go on. Members with questions to this, hold your horses. We will deal with the Russian issue as well then, we combine them.

Go ahead and speak to the unlawful recruitment of Kenyans to foreign armies then we can take supplementary requests to both.

Is Hon. Okello in the House?

The Prime Cabinet Secretary

: Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I will take the same approach. I will highlight the critical aspects and then submit the detailed report to Parliament for further interrogation.

I rise to address this House on a matter of profound national importance regarding the illegal recruitment of Kenyans into the special military operations of the Russian Federation and to further apprise the National Assembly of the measures the Government has undertaken to secure the safe repatriation of our nationals so far recruited. I wish to proceed as follows: First, the data from our embassy in Moscow indicates that approximately 252 Kenyans may have been enlisted in the Russian special military operations. The number could be higher, but the exact figure that we can vouch for is the 252.

The second aspect is that to date, 47 Kenyans have been rescued through the Kenyan embassy and facilitated for safe repatriation to come home. On the prisoners of war, we have records of two Kenyans, namely Evans Kibet and Macharia Willie Muniu who are being held in Ukraine. The Kenyan Honorary Council in Kiev, Ukraine has made consular visits to one of the Kenyans held and has requested to get clearance to visit the second one. At the moment, we only can talk of two specific cases in this category of prisoners of war.

I wish to point out that during my recent official visit to Moscow, I engaged and agreed with the Russian Minister to explore arrangements for Kenyans held as prisoners of war in Ukraine to be transferred to the Russian Federation to facilitate their subsequent repatriation to Kenya. At the end of March 2026 – I wish to also put this on record – there were approximately 1,000 Kenyan nationals living, working and studying in Russia. This is different from the ones enlisted illegally. They are the ones living there. The breakdown is that, 300 are students and 450 are engaged in different economic activities. They are not facing any threat whatsoever. I wanted to put that on record because there has been a misinformation that all Kenyans in Russia are in distress. That is not exactly true.

I also wish to point out a few other things. It has been established that the recruitment is being conducted by unregistered agencies and individuals operating either in Kenya, Russia and some countries in the Middle East. They use tourist visas and transit through neighbouring countries to evade scrutiny at our points of exit where surveillance is high.

This recruitment primarily targets ex-security personnel and unemployed persons. We have, however, noted that some Kenyans holding regular security jobs in the Middle East are abandoning their positions and voluntarily joining the special military operations in Russia. With the current crisis in the Middle East, there is a heightened risk that this could further fuel recruitment from third countries.

Contrary to prevailing reports, the majority of Kenyans enlisted in the special military operations of Russia went there with full knowledge and willingly. They signed contracts to participate either as logistics officers or in combat. The lucrative compensation, ranging from Ksh1.5 million to Ksh3 million upon joining, and a monthly salary of Ksh50,000 to Ksh350,000, as well as a promise of citizenship and hefty gratuity upon completion of the contract, have been a major motivation. At this point, we want to point out that it is not worth it.

In my trip to Russia from 16th to 18th March, I was accompanied by a delegation comprising Members of Parliament. I wrote to your Office and you cleared the Departmental

Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations, the Diaspora Affairs and Migrant

Go ahead.

The Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs (Hon. Musalia Mudavadi): Hon. Speaker, I wish to point out that there is also a growing threat around what we call the Golden Triangle, which is the border region where Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand meet along the Mekong River. It has turned out to be a human trafficking hub for forced criminality. The Golden Triangle is known for legal and illegal trade in the special economic zones set out to attract foreign investment, tourism and infrastructure development.

However, because of weak oversight and remote geography, some of the special economic zones have become hubs for organised crime, human trafficking, online fraud and money laundering. In the Golden Triangle that is not exactly “golden”, Kenyan youth, primarily between the ages of 23 and 35, have become soft targets due to the high demand for overseas employment opportunities in technology, finance, service sectors and digital jobs. The criminal networks running those compounds are highly organised, with recruitment usually appearing legitimate. The following processes are used to lure unsuspecting job seekers: fraudulent online job advertisements; abuse of tourist visas; re-routing, that is, victims leaving and then going through other countries; and for others, upon arrival, confiscation of travel documents.

The nature of the victim exploitation includes constant surveillance and confinement. Victims are not allowed to move. They have no freedom and are physically and psychologically abused. They are forced to participate in online fraud schemes and are sexually exploited. In extreme cases, they are sold to larger scam compounds for organ harvesting or disposed in the forests after death. They also experience starvation, poor medical care, debt bondage, ransom demands and are forced to work for up to 16 to 18 hours. I am highlighting this because we want to save our young citizens.

Trafficking routes are varied and many. Some go through the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) to Bangkok and thereafter, by road transport into Myanmar. Others go through JKIA to Ethiopia and then to Bangkok. They end up landing in trouble. Others go through JKIA to Ethiopia, China, and then find their way into Bangkok. Others go via India and Malaysia. Some go from Kenya to Uganda by road, through the Busia Border and then by flight through a third country. That is the trend and it goes on and on.

Let me just quickly highlight that from 2022 to 2026, over 751 Kenyans in Myanmar have been rescued. Out of that figure, 615 have been repatriated, 39 were imprisoned in Myanmar for illegal entry and repeat cybercrime offences, while about 97 who crossed over into Thailand are in the immigration detention centre awaiting deportation. In Cambodia, from January to March 2026, 323 Kenyans have been rescued. Out of that figure, 234 have been successfully repatriated and the remaining 89, are in the process of being repatriated, while others are being rescued. In Laos, 29 Kenyans have been repatriated to date. In Thailand, 14 Kenyans were imprisoned for bearing forged immigration stamps. Over time, three Kenyans have reportedly lost their lives in the scam compounds. This is a grim and scary communication, but it is important that we highlight it so that awareness can save lives.

Through many efforts, some of which I indicated earlier, the State Department for Diaspora Affairs is in constant communication with the relevant agencies to help rescue these Kenyans. They also engage in continuous sensitisation. Additionally, where they are structured migrations, the Diaspora Department normally engages in pre-departure travel advisories to ensure Kenyans are not harmed.

Also, some of these Kenyans acquire dangerous cybercrime skills, which can be very dangerous to the country once they come back. It is not a light matter; it is complicated. There is a multi-agency approach involving all government departments, particularly security-related,

foreign affairs, diaspora and labour, working together to ensure that Kenyans are safe. It may not always be in the public domain, but there is a lot of effort going on to help Kenyans.

Finally, let me briefly address the conflict in the Middle East, which has implications for Kenyans in the region. We have approximately 500,000 Kenyans residing and working in the Gulf and the surrounding Middle East region. The effects of the Middle East war are, therefore, real to Kenyans. The crisis entails security risks for the 500,000 Kenyans and reduced foreign exchange earnings through remittances. We have begun feeling the impact of air transport disruption and oil prices. Additionally, inflation could start filtering through into the economy. We have also seen disruption of our exports, not to forget that fertiliser and other critical supplies are being hindered. We could also face a possible hit on tourism. These are the challenges arising within the context of the Middle East crisis.

We all look forward to a situation where it can be de-escalated and stopped so that we can start the road to recovery. Kenyans need to put this into context. We had just begun to recover from the devastating global effects of Covid-19, and now, we are witnessing a very disruptive war again.

Let me mention that the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, together with our embassies and the Diaspora Department, as at 22nd of March, 15 Kenyans were evacuated from the Islamic Republic of Iran, with travel tickets fully funded by the Government of Kenya (GoK), while an additional six individuals were facilitated with the issuance of travel documents to enable their safe return. The Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, through the embassies, is in constant touch with Kenyan nationals in all these countries.

The government has also issued advisories to Kenyans, and we keep updating them on the situation. We have also submitted a requisition for support to the National Treasury, because we do not know how long this crisis could last and its full implications. We may need the support of Parliament to facilitate an additional Ksh400 million or so, on standby to ensure that in the event of this escalation, we can intervene and help Kenyans.

Finally, I also wish to point out that when the drones were firing in Iraq, we lost one Kenyan. That is the summary. I will ensure that the documents are submitted or tabled for further scrutiny by the House.

Thank you.

Thank you, Prime Cabinet Secretary. Members, the Prime Cabinet Secretary has addressed four policy statements: hardship areas, their designation and review; Kenyans being recruited unlawfully to foreign armies, particularly Russia; the conflict in the Middle East and its effect on Kenya; and lastly, the issue of the Golden Triangle and the young Kenyans being lured to go to Myanmar and the environs of that area for various criminal indoctrinations.

We can now take requests, clarifications, and questions on those four issues. Leader of the Majority Party, the Prime Cabinet Secretary will take ten questions. When you stand, specify which of the four you are focusing on so that we manage time.

Leader of the Majority Party.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Mine will be very quick. The first question to the Prime Cabinet Secretary is on the classification of these hardship areas. The disparity comes in when the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) push to have teachers draw hardship allowances to areas that were previously designated as hardship, but have since changed. The Prime Cabinet Secretary mentioned that in 2019, the Ministry of Education, together with the Ministry of Interior and National Administration, had established a task force. However, I would want to hear what the government is currently doing to standardise the areas classified as hardship areas for teachers and police officers.

The other one is not a question but a comment on the illegal recruitment of Kenyans into the foreign armies, particularly Russia. As he has said, many transited to Russia through

our neighbouring countries. Some already had jobs in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar, but then transitioned to work in Russia. I do not know what the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the State Department for Diaspora Affairs can do to engage Kenyans in the diaspora and enlighten them on the need to stick to the jobs they already have in those other countries, other than being enticed.

I engaged with a parent of a young person who moved from Qatar, where he was working as a security officer in a nice hotel. Sadly, he was enticed with better pay to go and work in the security sector in Russia, not knowing that they would end up working for the army. The State Department for Diaspora Affairs should do something to enlighten Kenyans and those working in the diaspora that when they want to change jobs, for instance, from the Gulf states to other countries, they liaise with State Department for Diaspora Affairs through the Kazi Majuu Programme to ascertain that the jobs they are being promised out there are jobs similar to what they are doing. This way, they cannot be enticed with better-paying jobs and then end up being recruited into the illegal army in Russia or elsewhere.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Jared Okello.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. I want to restrict myself to the classification of areas classified as hardship. This is the second time that our good Prime Cabinet Secretary has come before us to shed light on this most disturbing matter. I want to thank you, Hon. Speaker. You have consistently stuck with us on this subject, and I hope your intervention, together with that of the Prime Cabinet Secretary, will finally bear fruits.

Hon. Speaker, the Prime Cabinet Secretary could be aware that Nyando Constituency, which I represent, sits right between Muhoroni and Nyakach constituencies, both of which benefit from hardship allowances but Nyando Constituency does not. In all successive years, we have heard of flooding or adverse weather conditions in Nyando Constituency.

There is a live matter before court that the Prime Cabinet Secretary has alluded to under Case No. E-086 of 2025. Fortunately, this House is not a respondent in that matter together with the Ministry of Public Service and Human Capital Development, which is mandated to gazette hardship areas.

Whereas there are people who have gone to court because they feel disenfranchised by removing them out of that criterion, I do not think they additionally went to court to challenge new entrants into the scheme, such as Nyando Constituency. Now that the Ministry of Public Service and Human Capital Development is not party to this, this House, where this whole issue originated from, is not party to the live matter before court, what stops the Ministry from gazetting areas that were put into the new scheme and wait for the court to determine the issue of those who should cede ground and be taken out of the scheme? That is my concern. I thank you.

Hon. Saney.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. The differences in classification of hardship areas by the Ministry of Interior and National Administration, Teacher Service Commission (TSC) and the Judiciary, bespeaks that the criterion is not harmonised nor common.

Hardship is an environmental and arid and semi-arid (ASAL) issue. It is climatic and scientifically determined issue. It is not a political issue. Parameters like insecurity and simple flare-ups that may not last long cannot be a factor to consider to classify an area as a hardship. We are going to the same direction that led to diluting of the Equalisation Fund to cover up major swaths of this country. I believe we have politicised what is scientific. Hardship areas are ecological areas that have no rainfall or rather receive erratic rainfall.

Could the Prime Cabinet Secretary shed light how a scientific matter is handled differently? Jesus knows that Wajir is a hardship area and it does not change, even with devolution. Thus, this is more of politics than what a hardship area is. It is an environmental matter. Why should other parameters be brought on board to dilute the matter? Thank you.

Hon. Nabii.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I am retreating myself to the Russia-Ukraine mess.

I would like to know from the Prime Cabinet Secretary whether he is aware that Erastus Mundia of Passport No. BK642770 of Lugari Constituency, Mautuma Ward is one of those who died in Ukraine? What is the Ministry doing to bring the body back home?

Hon. Rindikiri.

Thank you. I want to confine myself on the question of hardship. I refer to my constituency that borders Isiolo and Laikipia as hardship.

Hon. Speaker, the problem is that Buuri Constituency is three quarters on the leeward side sharing the same geographical and climatic conditions with Isiolo and Laikipia. One cannot even know where the boundaries are. We have been losing teachers to Isiolo and Laikipia. It is a common problem. Our learning institutions have no teachers, but across the fence, you find schools where teachers work in shifts. Thus, the question is, what criterion was used to deny Buuri Constituency hardship allowance but take Laikipia and Isiolo, knowing very well the determinant is geographical and climatic condition?

Secondly, if we use insecurity as a measure, Buuri is on the northern grazing zone. It is one of the constituencies that is affected by the banditry menace. Thus, on that basis also, Buuri qualifies as a hardship area. Hon. Speaker, you have to intervene here because we are having a government discriminating against some other constituencies.

The policy holder is here. Hon. Makali Mulu. The Prime Cabinet Secretary will take the first 10 questions since the time allocated is running out but let us see what we can do.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I will be very brief. Where teachers and security officers are, you find there are nurses, doctors and agricultural officers. While teachers are earning hardship allowance together with the security officers, the rest do not earn hardship allowances. What explanation can we give to the civil servants who are neither teachers nor security officers?

Hon. Musa Sirma.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker for giving me the opportunity to speak on the question on hardship. My constituency is the only one in Baringo County without hardship allowance.

Is hardship a virtue?

Of course, it is monetary. Hon. Speaker, currently, all schools in my constituency are like private schools. For example, a school that requires ten teachers has only four. Thus, parents have to meet the difference by employing the required number of teachers. My neighbours, that is, Rongai Constituency, Mogotio Constituency, Keiyo South Constituency and even Tinderet Constituency are in hardship classification. Teachers are moving from Koibatek Sub-County. TSC staff take bribes from teachers to transfer them to the hardship areas. We are suffering as a constituency.

We have no teachers and we have never been granted affirmative action to employ more teachers in my constituency to meet the difference of the teachers who are being moved out

illegally by TSC. This is an imbalance and we have never been given affirmative action to enable us employ more teachers or given hardship allowance.

Other departments in Koibatek Sub-County receive hardship allowance apart from the TSC and the provincial administration. What is the difference? We need that clarified and hardship allowance given just like the others in Koibatek Sub-County, are receiving.

Thank you.

Hon. Paul Katana.

Asante Mhe. Spika kwa kunipatia nafasi hii. Viegezo vyote ambavyo Waziri amezungumzia ambavyo vinatumika kutenga maeneo magumu zaidi kuliko mengine kama kwa hali ya ukame, kutokuwa na nyumba, usalama na umeme viko ndani ya Eneo Bunge langu la Kaloleni. Jirani wangu pale Ganze, anazo shida sawia na Kaloleni; ilhali, wanapata allowances na Kaloleni haipati.

Mhe. Speaker, hii imechangia kwa walimu wengi kutafuta kwenda maeneo mengine kwa sababu ya hali ngumu ilivyo katika Eneo Bunge langu. Je, walitumia kiegezo gani kuipatia Ganze marupurupu na kuwacha Kaloleni? Vile vile, tukisema kwamba ni walimu na maafisa wa polisi ambao wanapata pesa hizi, kuna wafanyakazi wengi wa serikali ambao wanafanya kazi kule. Kama hawapati haya marupurupu, inakuwa ni vigumu kuendelea kufanya kazi katika Eneo Bunge la Kaloleni. Naomba Waziri arudie mpango wa kuangalia sehemu ambazo zina ugumu ili wakazi wa Kaloleni waweze kupata huduma kama Wakenya wengine.

Asante.

Hon. Pareyio, Member for Narok North.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker for giving me this opportunity to raise this issue. I was one of the Members who complained on hardship allowances for different areas.

My Constituency, Narok North, has difficulties because it rains the whole day in some areas. Teachers undergo very hard conditions to get to work. As we speak, they are running away from schools because of the difficulties they undergo as they work. Other constituencies that we border like Narok East and Narok West are beneficiaries. None of the areas in Narok North Constituency benefits from hardship allowances. The Prime Cabinet Secretary should look at the criteria they use because I believe that my Constituency is a hardship area.

Teachers are running away. We have a shortage in my Constituency now. Therefore, that Report should favour everybody because it is biased. People undergo hard conditions while going to work.

Thank you.

Hon. Ochanda. Does Bondo have hardship areas?

Hon. Speaker, the Prime Cabinet Secretary brought up the issue of criteria which is good, but he did not give us the process of identification. There are criteria, but he also alluded to some application at one stage. Do people or communities apply and what is the process like before they are subjected to the criteria?

Lastly, I do not know which magician categorised parts of Nyanza as hardship and left out all our islands. Bondo has five habitable islands which were left out in this categorisation of hardship areas. I do not know which magician did this.

Those are ten questions. Let us have a response.

Hon. Mandazi, I will give you an opportunity after the response. The Prime Cabinet Secretary faces a tricky situation; a lot of rain and drought are being described as hardship. Let us hear your policy on this.

The Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs (Hon. Musalia Mudavadi): Hon. Speaker, it is becoming interesting. Nairobi had floods the other day. I do not know whether we should eventually make it a hardship area.

First of all, please understand that to some extent, we are limited in our response to these questions by virtue of the matter being stalled in court. Therefore, we cannot benefit fully on the process and findings of the Report until the court case is determined.

Although the Ministry of Public Service, Human Capital Development and Special Programmes may not be there directly as a respondent, the fact that you have the Public Service Commission and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), then it is hamstrung. It cannot implement anything on human resource aspects, if the other two agencies are embargoed through a court process. That is an issue we hope we will overcome and move forward.

I will try and flag out a few areas. Firstly, the very essence of the Report is to try to deal with these discrepancies. My friend, Member for Buuri, gave an example. You can face a situation just across the road. You can be in Rongai or Ngong, and Rongai may not benefit from the hardship allowance, but a place further away in the same Kajiado County is affected. There are discrepancies which have been earmarked and captured in the Report. Maybe not all of them, but the broad principle will affect certain areas because even in the same constituency or county, there may not be uniformity.

This Report seeks to harmonise these discrepancies which have been bringing up the challenge we have. It will be folly for me to try and respond to each area. However, I will talk about it in the context of this Report intending to correct the situation. The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) was part of the Technical Committee. They were not left out. This issue was raised by Leader of the Majority Party. Therefore, they are contributors to the outcome of that particular report.

I believe that the Report will indicate harmonisation and migration of certain areas from being classified as hardship to non-hardship. In that Report, we will also deal with a more detailed approach to determine which is a deserving area in terms of hardship.

I flag the fact that in the Report, the parameters are laid out and are not arbitrary. The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) is an institution that has well qualified people, technically and professionally. In the document that I will submit to Parliament, you will see that there is a weighted system which they have approached and arrived at, from a scientific perspective to give weight to the unavailability of food, water, transport complications, social service disparities, climate conditions and terrain, poverty indices, security and high possibility threats in certain areas which feed into this particular document.

At this point in time, we have taken note of the specific areas. We will also draw them from The Hansard, where specific aspects have been raised rather than attempting to respond to each unique area. I would like to benefit from a more comprehensive outcome that is in the report that is completed, but currently, just held back because of the judicial process.

However, I think it is also important to point out that we are going to Singapore.

Let me now touch briefly on the issue that was raised about Mr Erastus Mundia by Hon. Nabii. We have it on record that we lost 10 Kenyans in that battle. Some may not have been fully identified. But through this collaboration with the Government of Russia and the Government of Ukraine, we are trying our level best to do proper identification. But because this is a war zone, some of them may no longer be identifiable because of the kind of weaponry that has been used. However, we are trying to track and get full details of the 10 people. We also have a record of about 38 other Kenyans who are held in hospital facilities. As and when we get information, we communicate with the next of kin. On this issue of Mr Erastus, if we have more reliable information, we shall not hesitate to communicate and share with the family.

I reiterate that the State Department for Diaspora Affairs continues to sensitise on the issue of labour mobility. We want to have constructive and productive labour mobility. We have very positive outcomes for many Kenyans. In fact, the cases of distress may gain more space in the media outlets, but there are actually more Kenyans with better stories who are working in different countries globally. That does not mean that we do not take them seriously. We do.

I appeal to all Kenyans to work with licensed agencies and the State Department for Diaspora Affairs for placement advice. Let us make sure that the National Employment Authority is contacted. These departments are there to work for Kenyans. Kenyans should not shy away from seeking advice from them. In Kiswahili, we normally say, kuuliza sio ujinga. It is perfectly in order to seek information. We encourage Kenyans to do so if they wish to engage in placement outside.

Thank you.

Hon. Members. Let me take a few more questions. Hon. Mwashako.

Asante sana, Mhe Spika kwa nafasi hii. Asante pia Waziri Mkuu kwa kuja kufafanua maswala ya malipo ya dhiki kwa walimu wetu na wafanyikazi wa serikali.

Mchakato wa mambo haya ya hardship allowance niliuanzisha mwaka wa 2019 kwenye Bunge lililopita. Baada ya walimu wa Taita Taveta kufanya Petition. Tulileta mambo hayo hapa Bungeni kupitia Kamati ya Elimu ambayo ilikuwa inongozwa na Mhe. Melly wakati huo. Ninashukuru kwamba hadi sasa, bado yeye ni Mwenyekiti wa Kamati hiyo. Nimamshukuru sana Mhe. Melly kwa sababu alikuja na Wabunge na wakatembea huko Taita Taveta. Walitembea sehemu ambazo zina miinuko, zile za nyanda za chini zinazosumbuliwa na ndovu na wanyama pori. Walikutana na walimu katika maeneo tofauti.

Siku ya kwanza walienda mahali kunaitwa Ronge Zone. Katika Mwatate Constituency, kuna zone moja pekee ambayo haipati hardship allowance. Yaani subcounty ni moja, lakini sehemu kidogo ambayo iko na matatizo zaidi ikaachwa nje. Mhe. Melly alikuwa pale na akajionea kwa macho yake. Tulitoka pale na tukaenda sehemu za nyanda za chini kule Wundanyi. Mhe. Melly alifika mahali mpaka yeye mwenyewe akaahidi pesa ya kusaidia shule. Maana yake alipata shule ya upili iko na walimu watatu kwa sababu kila walimu wakifika pale huwa wanatoroka. Baadaye, niliwapeleka Mhe. Melly na wenzake kule Taveta kwa ndugu yangu, Mhe. Bwire…

Avoid the temptation to make long speeches. Just seek clarifications.

Samahani. Baada ya huo mchakato, tulikuja Bungeni na tukapitisha kwamba sehemu hizo za Wundanyi, Taveta na Ronge zipewe hardship allowance. Ilipoenda kwa hiyo Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) , wakasema badala ya kupeana hardship allowance Wundanyi na Taita peke yake, watafanya Kenya mzima. Hii ndiyo ilifanya mambo haya yakachanganyikiwa.

Clarification ambayo ninataka kwa Waziri Mkuu ni kwamba, sisi ambao tulianzisha mchakato huu, na Bunge la Kitaifa likasema kwamba sehemu hizo zinastahili kuwa na hardship allowance, itakuwaje walimu wamengoja miaka mitano, huu ukiwa wa sita ilhli bado

tunaambiwa eti wanangoja kufanya a whole review ya Kenya nzima? Hii Bunge iko na nguvu. Mhe. Spika, ulitembea kule Taveta na tukakueleza na ukasema utatusaidia kufuatilia swala hili. Hatuna shida na kureview Kenya nzima. Tunatetea wale waliopewa na Bunge la Kitaifa. Wacha tuambiwe na Waziri Mkuu kwamba Wundanyi, Taveta na ile Wadi moja ya Ronge ziko pale ndani ili walimu wetu wapate afueni na kutia walimu wetu moyo ndiposa Watoto wetu wapate elimu vile inavyofaa.

Ninakushukuru sana, Mhe. Spika.

Hon. Kangogo Bowen.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) and how we understand, 80 to 89 per cent of Kenya is Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) . In the entire 47 counties of Kenya, including Nairobi, teachers teaching in Kibera undergo through hardships because the basic necessities are not available. I ask the Prime Cabinet Secretary that, instead of looking at this from an area-to-area basis, you should come up with a general amount for all the teachers or civil servants, so that you can give them a small increment in their salaries in form of hardship allowance.

That will benefit officers who are transferred to areas like Kibera or Taita Taveta. By providing an allowance similar to the non-practising allowance given to lawyers and medical practitioners working in Kenya, we will avoid piecemeal petitions in this House every other time.

Yes, Hon. Member for Kamukunji Constituency.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for the opportunity. I would like to focus on the recruitment of Kenyans as soldiers in foreign countries and particularly, the case of Russia.

I was wondering whether the Cabinet Secretary has looked into the future, given the fact that there is a great danger to people who go to war for other countries. If you look at the case of Afghanistan, where many foreign nationals went to fight, when they returned to their countries, they became radicalised and began undermining their States. Some of them go into criminal activities. So, as you have mentioned, these people have gone there intentionally, and have contracts. In this case, they will be rightly categorised as mercenaries.

Is there any policy or legislation in place, so that when these conflicts are over, and these people come back in large numbers, they do not undermine law and order in our society, and that the right policies and legislation are in place to protect citizens from the negative effects of the returnees?

The second question that I want to raise is on the issue of conflict in the Middle East now, particularly, the attack on Iran by the United States of America (USA) and Israel. I have seen that many counties in the world that are associated with the USA distanced themselves and denied their territories to be used in this conflict. Such countries include France and Spain in particular. What is our position, given the fact that we have defence agreements with countries like the USA? Are we looking to make sure that they do not use our territories in regards to the conflict in Iran?

Secondly, what is our position…?

Is that your second limb of the question?

Yes. What is our principal position in the international law? It is obvious that the attack on Iran is against international law. It is unlawful and illegal. What is Kenya’s position? We have not heard about our position publicly.

Hon. Taitumu.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. My question concerns the hardship allowance.

During the time of the late Cabinet Secretary, Hon. Dalmas Otieno, there was a report similar to the one that we are getting from the Cabinet Secretary that designated parts of this country as moderate hardship while others were extreme hardship. What happened to that report? I believe it captured the entire country where the intensity of the hardship varied from one geographical location to the next. What informed the decision to discard that report?

Thank you. Hon. K’Oyoo.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. While I accept that in Muhoroni Sub-County and specifically, my constituency, teachers are beneficiaries of this facility. I want it known that, for obvious reasons, we have spiralling border conflicts all the time and marauding cattle theft. The internal security officers, sometimes, wake up at midnight or very early in the morning to chase cattle rustlers, the Assistant Chiefs, Chiefs, Assistant County Commissioners (ACCs) , Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) officers and Officers Commanding Police Division (OCPDs) are not beneficiaries of this facility. I hope this will be taken into consideration. They should be given top priority in the next consideration.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Cherorot.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this time. I also want to touch on hardship areas.

On this issue, I want to raise the following question: One of my areas, Londiani Sub- County in Kipkelion East Constituency, was initially classified as a hardship area. However, we are now facing many challenges because many teachers have sought transfers to Kipkelion West Constituency, my neighbouring area, due to the hardship allowance.

There is also a challenge on the other side like Tendeno area which is very cold. A joke is told in that area where people just buy one pair of clothes when they go for an interview because within one or two terms, they get transferred. We have a shortage of teachers. I am requesting that we should be given affirmative action to employ more. As I speak, we now have very few teachers in my Sub-County of Londiani.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Yes, Hon. Nguna.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. My question is, last Term, we petitioned for Kitui County to be gazetted.

Order! That Kamukunji is illegal. Disband it. Go on, Hon. Nguna.

We successfully petitioned…

Hon. Eve Obara, are you the convenor?

We even went ahead to do research which was approved. It is now almost four years ago. We were not only touching on the issues of teachers but the entire Public Service. How far has the implementation plan gone in the current Government?

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Mandazi?

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Allow me as well to touch on the issue of hardship allowance. Most of the Members who went to mourn with the people of Emurua Dikirr passed through my constituency and they witnessed the adverse condition that my constituency is going through.

Hon. Speaker, I did a petition which went through the Public Petitions Committee. Equally, a recommendation was made and forwarded to the Office of the Cabinet Secretary for Public Service. When I went to follow up on it, I was told that the taskforce that was supposed to consider and confirm the conditions was disbanded. However, back at home, since I border Emurua Dikirr and Narok West Constituencies which are equally classified as hardship areas, whereas my constituency is not classified, I have suffered from shortage of teachers.

Any teacher that lands in my constituency does not last for two days. I have a case in two primary schools. One of them is Cheptagum, which has a population of around 700 students with only two teachers because of the conditions. I have since passed the same information to the TSC, requesting them to at least take affirmative action so that the shortage of teachers can be addressed as we wait for the process from the office of the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs.

Hon. Speaker, I would like to understand the current position of this Petition that I presented through this House, considered through the Public Petitions Committee and forwarded to the Ministry for consideration. Where is it currently? What is the current position for the same so that, at least, the people of Chepalungu Constituency can also be considered as they go through the adverse weather conditions unlike other constituencies.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Caroli Omondi.

Thank you very much, Hon. Speaker. I will be very brief. Let me begin by acknowledging the very extensive work that has been done in this matter. The criteria are quite elaborate. I am very pleased with it, to say the least. However, I was just wondering whether we could include, as part of the criteria, two other parameters using certain indicators such as prevalence of diseases. There are some areas where poverty is prevalent if you use multidimensional poverty indicators, one of which is prevalence of certain diseases. I see there is something to do with distance to hospital facilities and the rest. I think we needed to have more information. Alternatively, it would be enriched if we used poverty and disease prevalence as an indicator or as part of the criteria, otherwise it is very extensive. A quick look at it, I am very convinced the two Suba North and South would qualify. As of today, we only have Suba which is Suba North where we have Mfangano Island and Rusinga Islands. There are other islands as Hon. Ochanda said we have Kiwa, Remba and Kibwogi Islands which should also qualify. Finally, if you look at the criteria for Machakos, Nyeri, Kiambu, Ndeiya, Karai locations and Nyandarua, again that criteria would help us get more areas. Otherwise, Hon. Speaker, I support this and I think it will go a long way in harmonising this classification of hardship areas. Thank you very much.

Member for Malindi.

Asante sana Mhe. Spika. Mheshimiwa Waziri niko hapa leo na swali langu kuhusu wale watalii ambao wanaweza kutembelea nchi yetu nzuri ya Kenya. Sisi tunakaribisha wageni lakini shida ni kwamba, si kila mgeni anayefika hapa Kenya anakuja hapa kwa matumaini ya kuweza kufanya utalii hapa ndani ya Kenya. Niko na watalii kadhaa wa kadhaa ndani ya eneo Bunge langu la Malindi, ambao tumewapokea kwa unyenyekevu na kwa mapenzi yote. Wanapofika kule wanawalawiti watoto wetu. Niko na kesi ya kijana mmoja ambaye anaitwa Michael Valentine ambaye ni raia wa Afrika Kusini. Huyu mwanaume ama huyu kijana amekuwa na kesi za kulawiti watoto baina ya miaka mitatu mpaka

miaka tisa. Alishikwa katika kitendo hicho, mapolisi wakaweza kuharifiwa. Na kwa bahati mbaya, huyu jamaa aliweza kukimbia akapotea mpaka leo. Mhe. Spika, ninaposimama hapa niko na kilio cha wale watoto ambao wameharibiwa maisha yao. Mtoto wa miaka mitatu, miaka mitano, saba ama nane anaingizwa ndani ya gari na siwezi hata kueleza yale mambo ambayo hawa watoto wanafanyiwa na wale watalii ambao wanakuja kuzuru Kenya yetu. Ni masikitiko makubwa sana tangu 2024, 2025 mpaka dakika hii Mheshimiwa Waziri, wale watoto hawajaweza kupata ile haki yao. Swali langu ni kwamba huyu mwanaume ambaye anajulikana na maelezo juu yake, yako katika stesheni ya polisi ya Malindi, OB namba iko pale, majina yake yako pale, mamake anaishi pale ndani ya Malindi. Ni kitu gani ambacho kinaendelea mpaka dakika hii, ya kwamba hii Serikali yetu, huyu mwanaume mpaka leo hii hajawahi kushikwa? Niko na kilio cha mama. Kilio cha haki cha watoto wetu. Si yeye peke yake. Ukiangalia sehemu zile ambazo kuna watalii, kuna wazungu wengi wanakuja Kenya kuharibu watoto wetu. Natakakujua ile mikakati ambayo tuko nayo kama Serikali ya Kenya ya kuweza kuzuia mambo kama haya yasiendelee kufanyika. Na ile haki ya watoto wetu itapatikana vipi? Asante sana Mhe. Spika.

Prime Cabinet Secretary, those are another 10. You can now take a response. They are all generic. The different one is the one from Mnyazi. What I would want you to tell the House or the country is the apparent revelation of weak management systems in TSC because you cannot employ teachers, post them and at the whim of a complaint, you transfer them to where they want. We have recruited 100,000 teachers in this country. So, the ratio of teachers to students in the country must have dramatically improved with this recruitment. It is a shame to continue hearing that a school with 700 children has 2 teachers or no teacher at all. So, we need you as the holder of the policy to ensure that you strengthen the management system of particularly TSC. So that teachers posted to schools remain in those schools. When they are employed, they always sign that I am ready to work anywhere and everywhere in this country. Immediately they are posted, after getting the first salary, they want to be taken to where there is hardship allowance. This is the weak link in this matter. The Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs

: Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Let me very quickly just try and flag some issues. But first let me concur with the sentiments from the Chair. That the Ministry of Education and the Teachers Service Commission need to review and ensure that the issue of deployment of teachers is better managed so that we do not have this sudden disparity that we are seeing even after we have recruited so many teachers. 100,000 and another 25,000 are on the way to be recruited. So that is a valid concern which I will communicate and work with the Ministry of Education to emphasise. Now, I just want to repeat that on the issue of the hardship allowance, very valid examples are being given. The comment from the Member of Parliament from Kitui, is a matter that has been canvassed within this technical committee and we hope that we can address this once we are through with the legal impediments. The other thing that I wish to point out is that, yes, there was the Dalmas Otieno Report, but that was undertaken in 2009. So, 10 years later, which was 2019, there was the review of the other report. So, I am sure the circumstances in a number of areas that were undertaken during the late Dalmas Otieno's stewardship may have changed quite dramatically in certain areas. But again, we will take note and address that as we start looking at the implementation of the Report. Hon. Bowen and many others, in different ways, raised the issue about the harmonisation of allowances. This is why the Salaries Remuneration Commission is in place. It was clearly demanded, as set out in a law passed by this Parliament, that we need to move away from

discretionary approaches to salary adjustments or designation and have a structured institution that is independent, that can carry out this. That is why the SRC has the mandate to advise and approve on specific rates on allowances by the various officers. It cannot be done arbitrarily by the Executive. We have to respect the institutions that have been put in place. I agree that on the parameters, there will be a need to continuously revise them so that they are more specific and maybe more detailed in approach. Equally, the whole idea of having the prevalence of certain diseases is critical as a parameter, either in measuring accessibility to health or to water. This becomes a valid point from Hon. Caroli Omondi. The issue that has been narrated about the criminal by the name Michael Valentine in Malindi is most unfortunate. I would plead that if the Honourable Member can agree, perhaps, we direct it specifically, because it is a very targeted question, to the Ministry of Interior and National Administration so that they can have more concrete responses to that. It is a very unfortunate situation and definitely deserves to be handled very, very seriously.

Again, the issue of Hon. Mandazi is specific as well. We would want to look at that petition specifically so that we know where it stands. It would be important for us to track where it went after the submission. Once again, I just want to say that our…

You should touch on the question by Hon. Hassan of Kamukunji. The Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs

: Yes, I am coming there. Now, on Hon. Hassan’s issue, there were two specific issues. He raised the issue about how we manage these individuals who have acquired very dangerous skills coming back into the country, because then they could find their way into very dangerous activities that will pose security challenges to Kenya.

We are, as a Government, through the relevant agencies, keeping a very close track of these individuals after they have been identified. At the same time, we also get them to go through the de-radicalisation processes, because it is those who have either acquired military skills or those who have acquired cyber skills who also go through a process once we can identify them, so that they do not cause harm to the country. The threat is real. I indicated earlier that these are illegal activities. Whereas there may be some measure of leniency at this initial stage for those who may have unwillingly found themselves in this dilemma, in the long run, the full force of the law must come into play. I did cite the various sections of the law that could have been breached. Therefore, there will be a need for action against these particular individuals.

On the issue of Kenya’s position on the Middle East conflict at this point, the President of Kenya has pronounced himself on this. He has been very specific that Kenya remains strategically neutral. We have insisted that we should see a multilateral approach and resolution to this crisis so that multilateral institutions like the United Nations can play their respective role in helping to mitigate conflicts globally. We have called for the de-escalation of this conflict because it is having serious ramifications globally. Kenya will not escape some of those challenges, including the possibility of heightened terrorist activities as an aftermath or consequence of these various battles that are going on.

I want to state categorically that Kenya is not a party to the conflict. We are not at war. Other than what you might call consequential threats of the war, Kenya is not a party to this conflict. We are doing everything to make sure that Kenyans do not fall in harm’s way.

Thank you.

Prime Cabinet Secretary, on those four policy issues, I want to stop there. We have two questions, one from Hon. Oundo, another from Hon. Mwenje. They have consistently come here to beg the Speaker to allow the questions to be answered. If I give you 10 minutes, can you run through them? Are you ready with them?

The Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs

: Yes.

Whoever has them, can you bring them? If we can do it in 10 minutes, we have a very weighty matter coming up in the supplementary questions. Hon. Pukose, you also have a question or a supplementary question?

Let me deal with the two formal questions. First is Hon. Mwenje, then Hon. Oundo. PCS, you have only 10 minutes for the two Questions.

Question 5/2026

I will go straight to the Question. Hon. Speaker, I rise to ask the Prime Cabinet Secretary the following Question:

Could the Cabinet Secretary—

barriers, the enforcement of drainage corridors, and the protection of critical infrastructure, including roads and bridges.

Hon. Speaker, these interventions are more on an emergency basis. Let me very briefly just talk to the coordination mechanisms between the national Government and the Nairobi City County Government. Recently, the national Government entered into a cooperation agreement that we can supply or table for the House to be privy. It is a public document. The national Government will work with the county government and have a joint steering committee. I chair the joint steering committee. Governor Sakaja is the vice-chair.

We have a second aspect of it that is the implementation committee in this cooperation framework. The Governor of Nairobi is the chair and works with principal secretaries of the very critical ministries that deal with matters around infrastructure. Taking corrective action in several areas is estimated to require close to Ksh80 billion over time. Therefore, there is a need for cooperation between the national Government and the county government bearing in mind that this is the capital city of Kenya. There is no way at this point that the County Government of Nairobi can raise all these funds. There is need for collaboration in interventions.

We have prepared a draft concept or white papers. They focus on several areas such as water and sanitation, safe streets, markets and urban economy, legal, finance and governance aspects. We have matters of the environment and green development, and urban security. All this intervention is going to be on an integrated basis without usurping powers and functions of the County Government of Nairobi.

What are the long-term measures in the outline that I have given within the context of the very brief outline of the white paper concept? They include short-term, medium-term, and long-term approaches on how we can deal with issues that affect Nairobi. As we speak, one can point out that the national Government is undertaking many programmes already. For instance, there was no new sewer investment in the City of Nairobi since the colonial system. Right now, the Government of Kenya is investing very substantive resources to help in changing the face of Nairobi and improving matters of water and sanitation.

With that, planning and zoning will become a consequential adjustment. Bearing in mind that more sewer, more infrastructure, better roads, and more security will come through.

Hon. Mwenje, you assured me you are satisfied and you will not ask a supplementary question. I am not giving you a chance. I am sure you will look at documents. There is a very detailed response. You can tease out all the issues and go to play politics with them.

Hon. Oundo.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I would like the Prime Cabinet Secretary (PCS) to explain the delays in the operationalisation of the Muluanda Border Crossing Point in Funyula Constituency. His Excellency the late President Mwai Kibaki commissioned it on 28th March 2009. There is the subsequent presidential directive of 14th June 2024 to establish an entry and exit point between Kenya and Uganda.

He may state the steps or actions taken to implement the resolution of the Joint Technical Committee (JTC) meeting between Kenya and Uganda held on 18th to 20th April 2023 for development of entry and exit points at Konyao in West Pokot County, Lokiriama in Turkana, and Muluanda in Busia County.

Thank you. PCS, I assign five minutes to that. The Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs

: Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Indeed, this matter has been on the table for quite some time. I wish to respond as follows.

The operationalisation of the Muluanda Border Post requires concurrence with the Government of Uganda. In this regard, the Border Control Operations Coordination Committee

meeting was held on 29th July 2025. It highlighted the need for the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs to pursue further conversation with the Republic of Uganda.

The committee further proposed a joint site visit of Kenyan and Ugandan authorities to identify suitable land for setting up the proposed port of entry. Technically, the boundary formation between Kenya and Uganda at Muluanda/Bunyinde areas need to be done to determine the exact coordinates where the port of entry should be established.

The Kenya International Boundaries Office (KIBO) is apprised of this issue. In February 2026, just a month or so behind us, the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs requested the Republic of Uganda for a joint reaffirmation and demarcation of activities in the Muluanda/Bunyinde area. The Republic of Uganda has proposed that the said activities should commence in May 2026.

The road to the proposed port of entry is a rural road. The committee has recommended a road upgrade of Nangina junction to Muluanda. The road should be upgraded from Class C to Class A to meet the standards required for international trunk roads and effectively support the cross-border trade security and mobility.

I think the second aspect of it is the steps or actions taken to implement the resolutions of the JTC. I have indicated briefly that the committees met. We hope this conversation can be done in May 2026. Over and above that, let me update something on the proposed port. Through the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the government has acquired 20 acres of land for establishment of Konyao border. KRA is the designated lead agency in land borders around ports of entry and so forth. It is also in the process of acquiring prefabricated containers for temporary deployment of key agencies. Among them is immigration, health, customs, and so forth.

There is an environmental impact assessment report. NEMA conducted the assessment and forwarded findings to KRA so that implementation process planning can be done.

Hon. Speaker, let me just point out very quickly. It is quite complicated dealing with borders because you have to get the concurrence of the neighbouring country. We are still working on many segments of our border. Some countries take longer. KIBO is working very closely to continue plans between Tanzania and us. You have to budget. It is a very expensive exercise.

I know Hon. Oundo is a surveyor, so he understands the issues that I am raising from a technical perspective. One cannot demarcate a border between one country and another without concurrence and mutual understanding. We need to ensure that we are working in tandem. We are facing similar situations in completing our borders with South Sudan and Ethiopia. We are also working on the Somalia border to ensure that the process is done smoothly. So, there are multiple areas being canvassed, but we hope that during the scheduled May meeting, we can come to concurrence with our neighbours and proceed.

Hon. Oundo, you assured me that you will not ask a supplementary question, so I will not give you a chance to speak. You said that you had seen the response and that you were satisfied. Yes, Hon. Pukose.

Hon. Speaker, I want to thank the Prime Cabinet Secretary for the responses. I was listening to the question on hardship allowances, which has come up in almost every Parliament. His response indicated that a multi-agency task force was formed to deal with that issue. Could we have a kamukunji or a sitting where the

report of the multi-agency task-force is tabled before the affected Members, so that we can

Prime Cabinet Secretary, I heard you say that the conclusion of the report was halted by a court process. If we give the court process two or three months to end, how long would it take you to bring the final report with all the salient issues? Every Member’s psyche wants teachers in their areas to draw hardship allowances, even when their areas are

clearly not hardship areas. I have never heard of a situation where a lot of rain can cause hardships as one Member said. When can you bring the final report, after which I will assign a kamukunji? You will then appear before us with other cabinet secretaries whose dockets touch on hardship areas such as the Ministry of Interior and National Administration and the Ministry of Education. Those are the key ones. You will lead the Ministry of Interior and National Administration and the Ministry of Education in a conclusive discussion with Members on unfulfilled promises and declassification of certain areas as hardship areas.

Hon. Members, as leaders of this country, our dream is for none of our areas to be categorised as hardship areas in future.

You are released to go back to your other engagements. Call out the next Order.

Hon. Members, before Hon. Atandi moves the Motion, allow me to acknowledge his very co-operative and consultative approach to the work of this Committee comparable to previous activities.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for those accolades. I will move the Motion in an amended form.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, this House adopts the Report of the Budget and Appropriations Committee on its consideration of the Supplementary Estimates for the Financial Year 2025/2026, laid on the Table of the House on Tuesday, 31st March 2026, and pursuant to the provisions of Article 223 of the Constitution, Section 39 of the Public Finance Management Act (Cap. 412A) and Standing Order 243—

has not been captured correctly. I am here and ready to listen to all those issues until the final bell is called.

I want to add that most Members have been questioning the processing of Supplementary Estimates. I want to believe that this is probably the only and final Supplementary Budget we shall process in this Financial Year. In the past, we have processed many Supplementary Estimates. There is a year, I think, when we did three. I am happy that this is going to be the year we process only one Supplementary Budget.

Many Supplementary Budgets in the past lacked credibility for two reasons. First, because they basically mutilated the original Budget. The main Budget, as passed, would by the end of Supplementary Budgets become something one could hardly recognise. But for this one, we have tried our best not to tamper with the original estimates. In fact, what we have done is mainly to add and increase. If you look at the development vote, for example, it has gone up by about Ksh131 billion. In most cases, that is not what happens, it is usually reduced, cut and votes interfered with. I therefore want to assure Members that even as they approve these Supplementary Estimates, the original votes contained in development programmes across the country remain on course and are being implemented because we have not interfered with them.

Also, as part of the consultative process, we tried to minimise changes or reallocations. This has not gone well with some committees, but it was the only right thing for us to do. We are approaching the end of this parliamentary term, and if there is any project assigned in our various constituencies, I do not think it is right for Parliament to interfere with the votes and allocations so that they cannot be implemented yet we are going for elections. We promise and are determined that all programmes going on in our constituencies will be concluded. To push them to conclusion, we must allocate adequate resources.

I thank the Leader of the Majority Party, the leadership of the House, the Hon. Speaker and the Leader of the Minority Party. They have worked closely with me to ensure that we address the issues facing the country. Of course, the President has also given us the authority and permission to ensure that we do things right for the country.

Under these Supplementary Estimates, I propose to increase total expenditure by Ksh316.7 billion from Ksh4.3 trillion to Ksh4.6 trillion, equivalent to 7 per cent above the original Budget. It is also worth noting that on 30th March 2026, the National Treasury proposed additional adjustments amounting to Ksh61.65 billion to cater for emerging issues in security, housing, health and education. These revisions come in an environment of strong economic recovery supported by good weather, stable inflation and policy reforms under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda.

Members may be interested to know how we are going to fund the additional expenditure. In this Supplementary Budget, we have increased allocations to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) by about Ksh17 billion. The reason for this is that we want KRA to focus on three ite

tame tax avoidance, tame tax evasion and enlarge and improve the tax base.

going up. We are increasing it by Ksh131.45 billion, meaning that by the end of this process, the development vote will stand at about Ksh878 billion. This is substantial considering that in the previous year our development vote stood at about Ksh550 billion.

The positive trajectory in development spending is particularly noteworthy. Key sectors such as roads, transport, agriculture, irrigation, water and sanitation, health services, energy and livestock development have received additional resources to accelerate ongoing initiatives and address emerging priorities. For example, substantial increases have been directed towards road construction, agricultural value chains, water infrastructure and sports facilities, areas that directly impact the lives of ordinary Kenyans and support the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda.

While I have explained the financing of the Budget, I must also emphasise that the Government is pursuing stronger non-tax revenue mobilisation measures such as privatisation and securitisation. The Ksh17.6 billion enhanced to KRA is expected to boost tax collection and help government to minimise public borrowing. In addition, the National Treasury is advancing a programme of privatisation and asset monetisation turning underperforming public assets to revenue-generating entities.

The Government has put in place strategies to ensure that processes and institutions that are not adding value, but merely consuming tax revenues, are either wound up or restructured. This is a very important point that needs to be highlighted. We are not going to continue to fund parastatals that consume money, do not have development projects and consume money but only pay salaries. This House has taken note of that. We urge Government to quicken processes aimed at addressing those challenges.

Let me highlight a few factors that have made this Supplementary Budget necessary. The first is shortfalls in personnel emoluments across education, health and security sectors. When we passed the main Budget for Financial Year 2025/2026, we realised that personnel emolument votes for education, health and security were not adequately covered. That necessitated that we have to do a Supplementary Budget to cover those areas.

The second factor is urgent funding for security operations, national intelligence and policing. I want this House to listen carefully. If we are going to have insecurity incidents and it comes out that this House did not appropriate resources for security, that is enough reason for Parliament to be disbanded.

When it comes to matters of security, intelligence and policing, we must provide resources for that because we have to be safe. First of all, the country must be secured and Kenyans must be safeguarded. They must move around this country without any fear so that they can be able to develop, work and grow the economy.

Third is outlays for disaster response due to drought and floods. Just a few months ago before the rains, we had drought incidences and the Government had to move in swiftly to help in those areas where we had drought challenges, to provide food, water, and medicine. Another one is additional needs arising from donor-funded projects and debt service adjustments. The last one is the need to support ongoing reforms in agriculture, housing, health, which are pillars of BETA.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, as I will explain in the next phase of my presentation, universal health coverage was not adequately funded when we passed the original estimates. Therefore, we had some shortfalls which we have tried to address in these Supplementary Estimates and, of course, housing. The housing vote has received a substantial boost of about ksh25 billion which is going to help us address ongoing programmes. The Government is working very hard to ensure that we complete all the Affordable Housing Programmes across the country before the elections to ensure that the promise which we gave Kenyans of the number of houses we are supposed to construct is realised.

Let me now go to the sectoral supplementary allocations. As I said, governance and security remain the biggest beneficiary of additional allocations, accounting for about Ksh60 billion in total. The State Department for Internal Security and National Protection

receives ksh9.9 billion, broken down as follows: 3.9 billion for security operations and

Ksh2 billion for compensation of victims of demonstrations and post-election violence. I want to tell our supporters across the country. As you know, I am a member of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) Party. We had promised, in the 10-point Agenda signed between the President and the Late Hon. Raila Amollo Odinga, that we were going to address this long-term problem of victims of post-election and political demonstrations.

I confirm here on the Floor of this House that we have allocated Ksh2 billion to start off that process. The Kenya National Human Rights Commission (KNHRC) is going to administer the fund. We have also given them some Ksh45 million to start preparations and I think that preparation is ongoing.

The other issue is Ksh4 billion allocated for Police modernisation and National Integrated Security Command and Control. Hon. Tongoyo, the Chairman of the Departmental

Committee on Administration and Security, will explain. This is a very important allocation so

In public health, Ksh700 million has been provided for mosquito nets and monitoring malaria control efforts. Malaria remains one of the highest killers especially along the water regions like the lake region and the coast. Therefore, it is important for us to provide nets for those people who live in those regions. The interventions aim to sustain the gains made under Universal Health Coverage and to enhance service delivery at the grassroots level.

On infrastructure and housing, we have allocated Ksh23 billion for roads. The main projects under roads are:

use them to grow crops that will add value to the economy. We have realised that coffee can be grown in every part of the country: Nyanza, Coast and Western. We want them to start growing coffee. We will avail seedlings to them. When they prepare their farms, they will move into cash crop farming.

The Committee made the following recommendations:

Yes, Hon. Pukose.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker and my able Chair for moving the Motion on Consideration of Supplementary Estimates which has been introduced in the National Assembly. It seeks to introduce statutory sanction for public expenditures, current and development, for the year ending 30th June 2026 on the basis of Supplementary Estimates of the Financial Year 2025/2026. It is a Bill that has been introduced in the National Assembly. This Supplementary Bill, 2026, makes provision for granting statutory sanction for public expenditure for the year ending 30th June 2026 based on the Supplementary Estimates of expenditure for 2025/2026, recurrent and development estimates, and the appropriation of these amounts of money. Looking at our current Budget, one of the key trends we should pursue, and which is also the position of the Budget and Appropriation Committee, is to do zero-based budgeting.

Two, we should also have a Treasury Single Account. This will give us a better way of making our Budget. The Supplementary Budget only affects the national Budget; it does not affect the budget of the counties. If you recall, when we were moving the Division of Revenue Bill in this House, we said that when there is a shortfall, the national Government bears that responsibility. Looking at the Budget, you will find that there is a bit of a shortfall and, therefore, there is an adjustment in terms of recurrent expenditure. Where possible, we also try to adjust development expenditure to meet Kenyans' requirements.

In this Supplementary Budget, as the Chairman put it, we have tried as much as possible to work very closely with the Departmental Chairpersons. We have engaged them and even tried to minimise, as much as possible, the amendments which have been done so that we can meet the objectives of this Supplementary Budget. It is because when the Executive came up with this Supplementary Budget, they had certain objectives. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us, Parliament, to stay close to those objectives, minimise amendments, and consult widely to ensure that all issues are addressed.

Given the consultation, projects, especially roads, electricity, and water, must continue to completion. There is no point in starting a project, only to divert money from it to start another. This is the trend we are encouraging other committees to follow. It is very unfortunate when people realise a project is starting, only for the funds to be diverted midway to start an entirely new one.

In this Supplementary Budget, the biggest beneficiaries, as stated by the Chairman, are the security agencies and teachers. All the existing gaps are being filled. We also looked at other areas, including the health sector. Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) has a cancer unit that has not been operational due to equipment breakdowns. That presents a serious challenge for patients seeking cancer treatment and follow-up care.

The Health Committee made a proposal that we agreed with, which was that money be allocated for the purchase of a Linear Accelerator (LINAC) machine. The procurement process had already begun. To me, that will go a long way in supporting KNH, especially the Cancer Unit. Other areas with deficiencies, especially in personnel emoluments, include Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital and Kenyatta National Hospital. This Supplementary Budget has addressed those areas, making provision for personnel emoluments and ensuring that services within those institutions run smoothly.

On other projects, as my Chairman has indicated, we are encouraging subsidies, especially in the farming sector. We have been able to provide, as you are aware, for seed maize, especially in the North Rift. This is the planting season. In this Budget, we have been

able to provide subsidies to Kenya Seed Company. It will be required to offset the shortfall from last season, when it supplied farmers without increasing prices. In this Budget, we have provided approximately KSh1.3 billion to address the shortfall that Kenya Seed Company experienced in the last season. In the main Budget, which will be presented to this House later this month, we will allocate Ksh2 billion for this year to ensure the subsidy programme is working well. This morning, I spoke to the Managing Director of Kenya Seed Company. He assured me that the process is now on. Farmers can now access seed maize at the National Cereals and Produce Board, along with fertiliser, which is already subsidised. This is the way to go, to ensure that our farmers can access quality fertiliser and quality seed maize at affordable prices, thereby maintaining food security and enabling the country to produce sufficient food.

In this Supplementary Budget, we have also provided about Ksh2.1 billion to the National Oil Corporation of Kenya to help it get back on its feet. It is a strategic company in the country's fuel sector. As things stand today, with the war in the Middle East, challenges are likely to arise. There may be fuel hoarding, which could affect many sectors of the economy. Therefore, bringing NOCK back to its feet and ensuring it runs well is a very important part of this Supplementary Budget.

This Supplementary Budget has also provided Ksh1.4 billion to the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation (REREC). This is to provide power to off-grid areas, where people do not have access to the national grid, particularly in the north-eastern parts of the country. These areas rely on fuel generators, which makes access to services hard. This provision is intended to ensure that the KSh1.4 billion reaches the hard-to-reach, off-grid areas, so that they too can access electricity like other parts of the country. With those few remarks, Hon. Temporary Speaker, I second.

Leader of the Majority Party, proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I rise to support this Motion for adoption of the Supplementary Estimates for the Financial 2025/2026 Budget as the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee, Hon. Atandi, tabled yesterday. Let me thank the Budget and Appropriations Committee and all our Departmental Committees for the immense work they put in during the short recess. We said when commencing that it would be a working recess. Indeed, the tabling of this Report is testimony to the fact that we Members, especially those who sit in Departmental Committees, were very busy during the recess period. And so was the Budget and Appropriations Committee.

As the Mover and Seconder have said, this Supplementary Budget is over and above the Budget we passed at the beginning of this financial year, last June. Being a Supplementary Budget, it focuses largely on additional funding and allocations to address emerging issues or those that were not accommodated in the main Budget but have arisen after its passage. These matters were unforeseen and have been provided for under Article 223 of the Constitution.

That is why I say it is just a Supplementary Budget and not the main Budget. We will receive the annual estimates for the Budget itself in another three to four weeks. I say so because I have seen clamour by many of us to include everything they want in this Supplementary Budget.

Just to calm Members down, the main Budget is on its way, and many of the things that they have been pushing for can be accommodated within the annual estimates that will be tabled in the House before the end of this month. As per our statutes, the annual estimates must be tabled by the National Treasury by 30th April. We should start engaging with our Ministries,

State Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to ensure that our desired projects are captured in the Budget. This is to ensure that the budget process is consultative and engaging. We will then avoid the temptation of parachuting things into the Budget.

I must thank the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee, as his Committee met with all the chairpersons of Departmental Committees regarding the Supplementary Budget and agreed in principle to stick to what has been agreed between the Executive and the Budget and Appropriations Committee, which has a lot of veto powers. This is a very powerful Committee, which often runs into problems with the chairpersons of Departmental Committees. I beg the chairpersons of Departmental Committees to indulge the Budget and Appropriations Committee when it vetoes some of the re-allocations that you may want to make.

The Chairperson and the Vice-Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee have alluded to some of the challenges we have encountered this financial year, such as the war in the Gulf region, which will cause shocks to the world economy. We are no exception. Some Members have politicised the issue. I heard one of us shouting all over, daring the Government to increase fuel prices. The Government does not increase fuel prices. That is common sense. If you have been to any school, you would know that if there is a war in the Gulf region, where we get all our oil from, oil prices will naturally go up.

I saw President Donald Trump telling those of us who get oil through the Strait of Hormuz to either buy oil from the United States of America (USA) or to get it ourselves from the Strait of Hormuz. I do not know how many of us will be able to fight our way through the Strait of Hormuz to get oil. Instead of politicising the crisis, indulge the Budget and Appropriations Committee when it tries to rationalise all our expectations because of limited resources. We may not be able to satisfy all our needs immediately, and those emerging issues will naturally distort our budget process in this financial year and the next. We will have to incur expenditures that we did not plan for!

Just before the rains came, we had a drought. You will see in this Supplementary Budget that resources have been allocated towards mitigating the drought situation. After the drought ended, we then experienced floods, which required funds to mitigate. I saw the Governor of Nairobi City County saying that we want to demonise him, but we still expect him to sort out the problems that we created over 60 years, in two or three years. I do not speak for Governor Sakaja. I live in Nairobi, but I do not vote in Nairobi. He is a human being, and he cannot do it.

Through the e-TIMS system, there have been attempts, but there is deliberate sabotage of the digitisation process within the Authority because people do not want change. If we have to run a nation and move it to the first world, we must be a nation that pays taxes. We must be able to generate as much revenue as possible from this economy. We can raise an extra Ksh300 billion to Ksh400 billion without changing the tax regime by simply digitising our tax collection systems.

It has taken two to three years just talking about digitisation. We must tell those on the board and management of KRA that time is running out. We cannot keep talking about revenue and still sit here doing Supplementary Budgets. We should be a country with surplus revenue by now. Kenya is billed as one of the most tech-savvy nations south of the Sahara, but that tech-savviness is mostly seen on social media, where insults abound. It is not just in the innovation in the private sector. That innovation in the digital space must be seen in our revenue generation.

I know we have very good officers in KRA. We must not let down the intellect of those young and brilliant officers. Two years ago, we recruited a cohort of young, tech-savvy, and capable revenue officers, but the systems at KRA are not allowing them to realise their full potential in revenue generation. I want to challenge the leadership, and I hope the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning is here. One of the committees attempted to take funds from the KRA, but the Budget and Appropriations Committee has protected those funds. We do not want them to give excuses that they could not collect revenue because Parliament reduced their budget. Where I come from, they say ciringi imurikagwo na iria ingi, loosely translated to mean that you point a shilling with another shilling. If you want to generate revenue, you must spend money to do so. We have given KRA resources, and they must generate revenue.

The other challenge is the pending bills. We stand accused as a House because many times we reallocate resources during the Supplementary Budget from votes that had been adequately covered. In doing so, we cause Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to incur pending bills or rather to have pending bills because we take money from them. I must thank the Budget and Appropriations Committee for protecting MDAs from irrational re-allocations. I plead with Members of departmental committees to bear with the Committee this time round on the Supplementary Budget. The more we expose the country to pending bills, the slower our economy grows and, therefore, the more we sabotage the revenue-raising measures we are talking about and challenging KRA to improve on. Pending bills are monies that belong to traders. That money will still go around and come back to us in the form of taxes. Therefore, we want to ensure that, post passage of this Supplementary Estimate Bill, those MDAs with pending bills will not have the excuse that Parliament reallocated resources away from votes that had enough money to pay. So, there will be no cases of pending bills coming up.

The other challenge is Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs). You know, many of our CBAs fell due in the course of this year and last year. They needed to be provided for, and they have been provided for. There are issues that touch on the Teachers Service Commission (TSC). Those who have read the Report have seen that about Ksh21 billion will go to the TSC for employer contributions to health insurance, ensuring that teachers are adequately covered.

There is Ksh15.4 billion that will go to the Higher Education Loans Board to support the Higher Education Loans Board and the University Fund…

Give him one minute.

Hon. Speaker, I was saying there is Ksh15.4 billion to ensure that all our university students, including those who graduated from high school last year and are preparing to join universities, have adequate resources. That will

ensure that the Higher Education Loans Board and the University Fund have sufficient funds so that none of our children misses their chance to attend university.

Recognising the importance of the health sector and ensuring that SHA is indeed working for everybody, an additional Ksh6 billion will go towards the Primary Health Care Fund. That will actualise what we have been telling Kenyans that, the moment one walks into a Primary Health Care facility, a dispensary, a Level I, Level II or Level III hospital and he is a registered and a paying member of Social Health Authority (SHA), he will not need to pay any bills because that money will be provided for by the Government. The National Assembly has appropriated a further Ksh6 billion to the Primary Health Care Fund to ensure we cater for that. There is also an additional Ksh5.4 billion that will go towards the payment of the health sector inter doctors who are working for us, to ensure they have enough money.

The other issues have been alluded to. There is what is going towards the Ministry of Defence for salary adjustments for our armed forces, in recognition of the sacrifice and diligence they put in to defend our borders and ensure we are all safe. There is also the National Intelligence Service, which helps gather intelligence to protect our nation and ensure the growth of our economy.

We have not forgotten our police men and women in blue who also serve us. We have another Ksh7.5 billion going to the National Police Service to cover operational needs and ensure that places like Meru, Baringo, Tigania and Igembe, where people have suffered from cattle rustling, including Buuri in Meru, are secure and the police have operational...

Your time is up, the Leader of the Majority Party. Hon. Adan Haji. He is not in the House. Hon. Paul Nzengu, are you queuing for this? Go ahead.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this Report by the Budget and Appropriation Committee. I want to congratulate the Committee for appropriating money for higher education. I have seen that money has been allocated to take care of more universities and other important educational matters. From the outset, I want to express my dissatisfaction with the entire budget-making process. I sit in the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy, Water and Irrigation.

We spent a lot of time as a Departmental Committee trying to understand the ministries. The State Departments and ministries appeared before our Committee and made submissions on critical issues that needed to be addressed. As I speak on this microphone, I report that the Committee is completely dissatisfied with the way our Report was handled by the Budget and Appropriations Committee. We made a clear submission based on the information we had received from the State Department. However, it appears that our effort was completely futile. Therefore, I want to ask: what is the role of Parliament and parliamentary committees in this budget-making process, if our input is not required? I plead that we amend the Constitution and remove the budget-making role from committees, because it is a waste of time to spend a lot of time discussing these issues and then have them thrown under the water. I want to ask that the National Treasury, for example…

On a point of order.

Yes. Hon. Nzengu, there is a point of order from Hon. KJ.

Hon. Speaker, I would like to know whether the Hon. Member is in order to say that these…

Take your seat, Hon. Nzengu. When your colleague is on his feet, you take your seat.

Hon. Speaker, the place of Parliament in budget-making exists in our very cardinal laws in this country. To imagine that this House can be uprooted from the budget-making process is unimaginable. I want to know whether it is in order for Hon. Nzengu to propose that budgets can be made elsewhere and Parliament just comes to pass them. Hon. Speaker, I want you to find him totally and absolutely out of order because the place of budget-making for this House is very well protected. I wish you would find him totally out of order!

Hon. Nzengu.

Hon. Speaker, I was expressing our frustrations as a Committee. In this final Report, it seems that the National Treasury has some hidden cards. They bring the Budget Estimates, then underground, they also introduce new monies. For example, in the water sector, over Ksh4 billion was introduced that was not appropriated by our Committee. That is why we are expressing our frustrations, and we need to know exactly…

On a point of order.

Hon. Nzengu, there is another point of order. Yes, Hon. Kimani Kuria?

Hon. Speaker, is it in order for the Hon. Member to misinform and disinform this House deliberately? The appropriations we are debating today are contained in the Order Paper. So, saying that the National Treasury has some undercutting planned for later is asserting an improper motive on very credible officials of this country. Therefore, the Hon. Member must withdraw, apologise, or substantiate those matters that he is raising on the Floor of this House.

Hon. Nzengu, you are responsible for the accuracy of the statements you make.

Yes, Hon. Speaker. I want to refer whoever is concerned to that Schedule in the Report where it has been reported severally that, for example, there are Votes 1104 and 1109. There are several monies that have been brought from the National Treasury, and it is written. For example, I can read one of them: ‘...increase Ksh805 million, development for critical water projects, National Treasury, addendum’. That is money that came directly from the National Treasury without passing through our Committee. Therefore, we are asking: what is our role in this budget-making? If the National Treasury introduces money that has not passed through the Departmental Committee, it means we have no role. That is what I am saying, because it is…

On a point of order.

Yes, Leader of the Majority Party.

Hon. Speaker, Hon Nzengu is trying to be intelligent in his defence. This is not the first time the National Treasury has sent an addendum to the estimates that they tabled before the House. When I tabled these Supplementary Estimates, an addendum was attached that was considered by the Committee,, but that does not mean that the National Treasury, as holders of the purse from the Executive, cannot introduce amendments. As I said, there will be emerging issues that come through the National Treasury, which are accommodated by the very powerful Budget and Appropriations Committee, in line with our Standing Orders. That is why, under Article 114 of the Constitution, as an ordinary Member, I cannot introduce an amendment to the Budget report without reference to the National Treasury. Therefore, it is not right to misinform the country that the National Treasury is doing something underhanded.

There is nothing underhanded in the National Treasury introducing an addendum. It would only be underhanded if there was no addendum presented to the Budget and Appropriations Committee. It does not mean that the Budget and Appropriations Committee is not a committee of this House. The Budget and Appropriations Committee is a committee of

this House. Hon. Nzengu is trying to be intelligent in how he answers the question because he has been here and he knows it. You know what I know and you know I know what you know.

Hon. Speaker, with all due respect to the Leader of the Majority Party, my question is very clear.

Yes, Hon. Nzengu.

Ksh800 million has been introduced. It is a bulky amount that is not itemised. It is just referred to as money allocated to a pool. How can we be so sure? Why then do Ministries and State Departments come to our Departmental Committees instead of the Budget and Appropriations Committee? They should deal with all the Ministries to avoid spending our energy and time! My complaint is that we spend time, yet none of our thoughts or recommendations is considered at all! Hon. Speaker, when the Chairman was moving…

On a point of information.

Do you want to be informed by Hon. Kimani?

I do not mind being informed.

Inform him.

Hon. Speaker, I stand on a point of information. I think we get confused at times as Departmental Committees because the reports that are tabled by a Departmental Committee in this House only inform debate in this House. Discussions on the Supplementary Budget would proceed whether or not there is a report by the Departmental Committee. So, the Budget and Appropriations Committee is the one processing this particular discussion, and, therefore, their recommendations take precedence.

Hon. Speaker, on several occasions, the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning has made recommendations to this House that have been ignored or vetoed by the House. That is why Parliament is a debate House and a budget-making House. Therefore, nothing stops even Hon. Nzengu from bringing an amendment on this Supplementary Budget to this Floor, which this House would make a decision on.

I beg to inform my good Member, Hon. Nzengu.

Thank you. I have been appropriately informed, but, Hon. Speaker, I will still continue with my submission as planned.

regions, and I will make it clear to this country that this Parliament has been involved in perpetuating skewed development.

I submit, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Hon. Mayaka.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to contribute and support the Supplementary Estimates tabled before us by the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriation Committee. At the outset, I agree with the Speaker. He said we salute and acknowledge the fact that the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriation Committee was very consultative. He ensured he looked at what each part of the country would get. I congratulate my brother, the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriation Committee.

Looking at the expenditure highlights that have been communicated, we do have a Budget increase of about 2.75 per cent that will go to different areas. The specific sectors allocated money are very fundamental to this country, one of them being the education sector, which is a top priority. There is also an allocation increment for the School Feeding Programme and the Special Fortified Porridge.

I have also seen an allocation increment to different areas in terms of tertiary education. Additionally, national security, health, and agriculture sectors have also seen an increase. It is exciting for me to see that development expenditure has increased by 12.05 per cent. It is meant for infrastructure. For those of us who come from Nyamira County, particularly West Mugirango Constituency, which has not seen an additional tarmac road for almost 30 years, a road stretching from Borabu to West Mugirango has been included in this allocation. This is very significant. It shows that we are not only looking at development in one particular area; we are also looking at other areas.

I saw very disturbing reports the other week about the President's visit to the Nyanza and Western regions. People were complaining that taxpayers would be required to pay more for the railway to be extended to the Western and Nyanza regions. This is very discouraging. Why would people be upset seeing development going to the two regions? We have even told the President that we want the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) to pass by Ikonge and have an actual station passing through Nyamira County so that we benefit. When development projects are being allocated to areas that will support Kenyans, we should support them. We cannot be people who just want one area developed.

I am glad that the energy sector has been considered. The Gusii region has only 45 per cent electricity coverage, while some areas have much more than that. Allocating for the same will count for a significant increment. We are excited.

Another key beneficiary, as mentioned here before, is the personnel welfare of the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) . This is very encouraging because they do a very good job.

The other area that is very significant is the revenue projection. It has increased by Ksh3.4 trillion. This also deserves an accolade. We want to encourage an environment where we are not only spending, but also encouraging revenue streaming.

Some of the key priorities and directives the Supplementary Estimates have allocated include existing and ongoing projects that need additional financing to be completed. Another area that I have alluded to is infrastructure, particularly the roads. We have already seen that the Mau-Rironi Road construction is underway. It is going to open up the Western frontier and the Kavirondo Belt.

Also, the agriculture sector, in terms of fertiliser and irrigation, has benefited from this, not to forget health. Another significant milestone and increment in these Supplementary Estimates is in the space of affordable housing. Again, this is very exciting because Nyamira will be one of the beneficiaries where we will have additional affordable housing projects. We

will have hostels for students of Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC), which is very significant to the people of Nyamira.

However, I have a concern which I have mentioned here before. As the Chairlady of the Committee on Regional Integration, I am concerned that the State Department for East African Community Affairs has no allocation. I wish that the Hon. Chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee would listen to me. I wish that Hon. John Kiarie would allow him to listen to this issue because it is a concern.

Hon. Temporary Speaker and the Members of the Committee on Regional Integration attended the Summit of the Heads of State in Arusha. One issue that came out of the State Department for East African Community Affairs was that they do not have adequate funding to support the projects they are doing in that space. This is very concerning because we are all aware that one area where Kenya does a lot of trade, in terms of import and export, is within the East African Community (EAC) corridor. Therefore, if you are not supporting the State Department that engages with other EAC members, then we are not supporting that space.

The Committee on Regional Integration has decided to call the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee to engage him, so that he can understand why it is very important for the State Department for EAC Affairs to be given an additional budgetary increment. I support this Motion. I hope that the infrastructure projects, development projects, and pending bills incorporated into these Estimates will come to fruition, so that we may see gains between now and the end of this financial year.

With those few remarks, I submit and support the Motion. I thank you.

Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to contribute. I stand to support this Report by the Budget and Appropriations Committee. As the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning, we had great input in this particular Report. One of the issues raised by the Leader of the Majority Party is the allocation of resources to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) , especially for the digitisation of systems. We are now at an age when Artificial Intelligence (AI) exists. They need to stop using the old brick-and-mortar approach to expanding our tax base.

It is important to note that only 20 per cent of Kenyans pay 80 per cent of our taxes. KRA should know we cannot continue to burden 20 per cent of Kenyans with 80 per cent of the total collections in this country. To do that, they must digitise their systems. That is where the solution lies.

We have a lot of imports that come into this country. However, when you compare the value of those products and the amount of money declared, there is a huge difference. Our scanners at our points of entry need to identify the exact product and its value, so that everyone pays the right share of tax. Nobody will pay more taxes. Everyone will pay their fair share of tax, not one shilling more and not one shilling less.

I thank KRA because, after extensive deliberations, they have now removed the special table which has been giving taxpayers nightmares. Many taxpayers are tax-compliant and are paying their rightful share of tax.

We have also allocated resources for training on the Electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) system. Although it is a great system that will transform our economy by ensuring fair procurement processes and reducing pending bills, budget absorption is very low due to its low uptake. We have now provided resources to ensure that the e-GP kicks off and that every entity is on the platform. Everyone using the platform, including suppliers, should be well-trained.

We have also recommended serious reforms to our pensions. It is baffling that the Pensions Department asks our retirees for their first pay slip when they are retiring. We have teachers who were employed 40 years ago; how will they have a copy of their first pay slip? It is impossible. We have given the Pensions Department the resources to automate the process so that when a public officer retires, they automatically move from the pay slip they had when employed to the pensions pay slip.

Most importantly, this Supplementary Budget comes at a time when I expect future budgets to have a smaller fiscal deficit, because of what this honourable House passed two weeks ago—the National Infrastructure Fund Bill. I am very happy to see that the Head of Public Service has today gazetted the Governing Council for the Infrastructure Fund. As this House approved, we now have FCPA John Mbadi as Chairperson of the Board of the Infrastructure Fund. We also have the very knowledgeable Dr Kamau Thugge, the Governor of the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), and the Attorney-General.

Most importantly, I want to introduce several other people who have been gazetted as members of the Governing Council. There is Prof. Benedict Oramah, who is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Export Development Bank and previously served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank). These are professionals who are very knowledgeable in raising private equity. This Fund will provide seed capital for the Ksh5 trillion infrastructure fund that His Excellency the President envisions will take us, as we call it, to Singapore. This is now beginning to take shape.

We also have Mrs Faith Boinett, the current Chairperson of the Kenya Pipeline Company, a polished and experienced civil servant who will bring extensive experience in both the public and private sectors. Notably, Mr Paul Russo is the current Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Group and the Chairperson of the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA). We are saying we will develop our infrastructure without adding to our national debt. These players in the private sector, like Paul Russo, the CEO of KCB Group and another appointee to the Governing Council, Mr Richard Etemesi, who we all know for his expertise at Standard Chartered Bank. When Standard Chartered started its operations in Kenya and Africa, these were the people who drove the dream. I am excited that, as this House approved, we have a group of professionals trained and experienced in raising capital and private equity, who will help the National Infrastructure Fund grow to the Ksh5 trillion we anticipate.

This weekend, when you and I think about going to Nakuru, especially during Easter, it is going to be a nightmare. We are likely to either spend the whole night or day on the road, while going to our constituencies or coming back. These funds will develop the Rironi - Mau Summit Road, extend the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) to Kisumu and Kampala, and fund the other infrastructure envisioned by the National Infrastructure Fund.

Most importantly, this Supplementary Budget increases capitation funding for our schools. I was speaking with some of the principals in my constituency, and they said that, for the first time, they had capitation money being disbursed on time. They hope these additional resources will also account for, first of all, the increased number of students in our schools. The funds should be enough to fund our schools through capitation. They should also be disbursed on time.

We are also facing a crisis in higher education because the resources we allocated in the main budget are insufficient to support our students in higher education. This supplementary Budget increases resources for higher education financing, ensuring that learners are well-equipped and trained to run our economy.

Also notable is the allocation of resources for medical insurance for our teachers. For a very long time, our teachers have struggled with insurance policies that are not well-covered

or financed. With this Supplementary Budget, there will be sufficient resources for our teachers’ medical insurance.

We also note the allocation of resources and the non-financial recommendations that have been made in both our Report and the one adopted by the Budget and Appropriations Committee. It is about having a Treasury Single Account (TSA). It is quite unfortunate that for a very long time, the government has been borrowing its own money and paying interest on it. You find some MDAs holding funds in fixed deposit accounts or leaving them idle in one bank account, whereas we are borrowing to finance our Budget. It is the banks that hold these deposits that have been buying the Treasury bills and bonds. That is why you saw, for a very long time, interest rates for our Treasury bills and bonds going as high as 17 and 18 per cent. That is why even banks had no business lending to the private sector. By doing nothing but holding deposits for roads, schools, water, irrigation, or energy, they were able to lend that money back to the government at interest rates as high as 17 and 18 per cent. The question then is: why do they have to come and look for you to loan you money? Once the Government and the National Treasury implemented TSAs, among other monetary and fiscal policy measures that the Central Bank has done, we have seen those interest rates go as low as 9 per cent and 10 per cent. There is now no money available in these banks that belong to the government to lend in terms of Treasury bills or bonds.

Another recommendation that we have made – and I have seen this in many Committee Reports – is that we are paying too much money for renting Government buildings. You will be amazed at how much we spend on paying rent for Government buildings. For example, the KNBS received Ksh800 million around 10 years ago, and placed it in a fixed deposit account. The Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA) was also given some money that they kept in a deposit account, whereas we are paying Ksh100 million to rent those office buildings. We have told these entities to consolidate their money and how much they are spending on rent, then buy their own building. This will enable us to save on the rent that we are paying as a country.

It beats logic why we would pay Ksh100 million in rent. In 10 years, that is already Ksh1 billion in rent, yet that building would have cost, say, Ksh500 million to acquire! We have told all Government entities that pay rent to consolidate their rent and have one large building that can host everyone. This will help us save money on rent.

With those many remarks, I beg to support this Report. I congratulate my good brother, Hon. Atandi, for being very accommodating by reaching out to all the chairpersons and making sure that he has balanced the interests of the Republic of Kenya. This country is bigger than all of us. It is bigger than our constituencies and our counties. You must ensure that development reaches every part of the Republic of Kenya.

I beg to submit.

Very well. Member for Mandera West. He is not in the House. Hon. Rindikiri.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I stand to support this Report and congratulate the Chairman and the entire Budget and Appropriation Committee for a balanced Report. I represented the Departmental Committee on Housing, Urban Planning and Public Works, and our Report was adopted by this Committee. Housing is a very critical agenda in this country. We asked for an additional KSh25 billion so that we can fast-track the increasing number of projects that the Government is undertaking.

Regarding the issue of public works, which has been struggling for quite some time, we met stakeholders during our committee sittings. I am happy to report that our prayer was answered, as this has been appropriated accordingly. This is not the only sector that is of concern to this country. The main issue is food security, and it touches on water, fertiliser, and

farm inputs, among other things. I am happy to see that the Committee considered anything that is going towards the agricultural sector very positively.

Remember, we have just come from the dry season. Thank God, the rains have come, even though they have come with consequences. As for resource allocation, I am happy to see that a lot of money has been put into this Supplementary Budget. It is very important for all of us to realise that education is key to this country. We have been challenged as a country and Parliament that when money is delayed, capitation is also delayed. That there is no money for university education and Technical and Vocational Education and Training Institutes (TVETs). However, I am happy to see that a lot of money has now been pumped into the education sector to cover University education, TVETs, and basic education. Moreso, because of the new education system, which requires a lot of infrastructure. I am happy to note that the Committee has considered a lot of requests positively. In almost every school now, there is infrastructural support that the Government is doing. We are not yet done. I urge that, as we continue, it is good to note that there is some critical infrastructure that is lacking in our schools, like workshops to go along with the Junior Secondary School (JSS) system. I am also happy to note that the Committee's thought process is aligning with the requirement presented by the Departmental Committee on Education.

The other issue is the health sector. There is one person I think is mad. He said the Social Health Authority (SHA) will collapse in six months’ time. I wish he were here to witness what the National Assembly, through the Budget and Appropriations Committee, is doing to ensure more resources are availed to the health sector. Payment of the pending bills carried forward from the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) is a commendable job by the Committee.

The upgrading of Level 5 hospitals, particularly Meru Level 5 Hospital, is a result of what the Government is doing. We really need to support the Government. Security is also very critical. I come from an area that has been invaded by bandits. This is very expensive. Our citizens are having sleepless nights because the bandits have been invading them. They have completely weakened our economic base. It means we might not be able to survive for long in that area, which covers Buuri, Tigania West, Tigania East, Igembe East and Igembe North constituencies. Now, with the increased allocation of money that will go towards the purchase of security equipment, I think we will see the subduing effect of the invasion of the bandits.

I have noted a few concerns, particularly on items in Vote 1335, the State Department of Youth Affairs and Creative Economy. There is a bit of an increase in the budgetary allocation. We need to be very careful because this is a vote that is very impactful on our youth. In Vote 1186, the State Department of Children Welfare, the State Department of Communication Technology and Digital Economy and the State Department of Environment have been affected negatively. I think we need to be very careful about this. Matters of the creative economy, youth, children, and the environment are very critical to us as a country. As we work on the main Budget, we must avoid further weakening this State Department, because it is vital to the nation’s growth.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I support and, once again, thank the Budget and Appropriations Committee, led by my very good friend Hon. Atandi. We agreed, when I made the presentation that we would go and address the problem of public works. I have seen that you have done something good for that, but going forward, we need to team up so that we can see that the Department is very critical in terms of implementation of the housing sector. It needs a lot of support.

Hon. Ochieng’.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, Hon. Melly is complaining, but I have been sitting here since the Motion was moved.

Do not waste your time answering Hon. Melly. Just make your contribution.

I have been sitting here before you were here. I have been sitting here from the time the Prime Cabinet Secretary was here. I have not just come now. I have been patient.

It is very important to appreciate the role of the Supplementary Budget. After seven or eight months of implementing the Budget, the Supplementary Budget helps us assess efficiency, efficacy, and how the Budget was implemented. Then, we can make adjustments to make it more useful to us as a country.

I want to thank the new Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee. In that Committee, I have witnessed transparency and observed consultations. There is a clear desire to include everyone. I have seen my Chairperson and Members try to accommodate each Chairperson. We sent some back and asked them to return with acceptable proposals. I believe what is before the House today is a product of proper consultations that considered certain interests where necessary. It is for the good of the country.

The onset of the rainy season caused emergencies in Northern Kenya. There are issues with e-Government Procurement Services (e-GPS) and low budget absorption. Therefore, it is important to consider these matters and adjust the Budget. In this Supplementary Budget, we have provided funds for emergencies from the heavy rainfall experienced. We have made appropriate allocations to schools, healthcare, security, ICT, water, and housing.

A few days ago, the Principal Secretary for Housing said they had been told there was Ksh2.5 billion for ongoing projects in the housing sector. This afternoon's Budget ensures the housing sector can pay those who have done work, and that planned projects move forward. I want to tell those in the housing department that there will be no excuse after this budget passes. What is planned should be sorted out quickly. Procurement is still taking too long. Projects planned last year, some of which were scheduled for 2023, are still not completed. We have a lot of back-and-forth in completing the processes meant to ensure the money they have is used properly.

One feature I witnessed throughout the week, as we listened to the Chairpersons of Committees, was the slow, and in some cases, non-absorption of the Budget. This country cannot develop if national budgets are not absorbed. We cannot be told that the monies moving are for recurrent expenditure – for tea, travel, and flying - but that monies for building infrastructure meant to grow the economy are not being spent. The Government has decided that e-government procurement is the way forward. Therefore, concerned departments must ensure everyone can act accordingly and properly implement the policy. I am happy that efforts are being made so everyone understands how e-government procurement works in both the public and private sectors.

Capacity building of KRA is key. It is just that we have had this song for too long. In the main Budget, we gave the KRA IDF. We are now adding KRA another Ksh17 billion. We are going to ask KRA for results. We cannot keep saying that the cow that produces milk must be given enough Napier grass, even though you do not see results every day. We need to go beyond simply providing Napier grass. We always claim to be below our revenue collection targets. This should not happen unless the KRA's targets are unrealistic or unachievable. The targets should be adjusted so the country can budget based on what will actually be raised. The KRA has been allocated Ksh17 billion in three months to build capacity, an enormous sum. Even if some of this goes to upgrading ICT systems, KRA should ensure it is fully equipped to deliver by the new financial year.

I have heard something for the last three to four years. It is about the role of the Budget and Appropriations Committee in this process. The Budget and Appropriations Committee cannot just sit to approve, pass or agree with all the Chairs of Committees. No. The Budget and

Appropriations Committee is supposed to have a bird 's-eye view of the economy and the country. We cannot have a situation where Committee Chairs appear before the Budget and Appropriations Committee and expect it to pass what they bring, even if it is wrong or does not balance. That cannot be allowed.

We must agree: the Budget and Appropriations Committee is not a rubber stamp. We are not a formality. The law put us here to ensure the budget is done efficiently and that every sector of the economy is provided for. It is not right for Committee Chairs to tell us we cannot disagree with them or that we are interfering with their budget.

For example, you were given Ksh2 billion for roads in the main Budget, and later on, through a Supplementary Budget, you want to redirect all that money to something else. Why did you budget for it in the first place? You budget for school infrastructure construction—as some department overseen by my good friend the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Education did—but the infrastructure was not constructed, and they moved all that money away from that programme to another programme. Where were you?

That is why I believe that the Budget and Appropriations Committee must be allowed to do its job. We should not be cajoled by the Chairs of Committees into not moving or changing such decisions. It is our job as a Committee to do so. I ask Chairman Atandi not to be bullied by anybody. Do your job in the right way. We cannot have a situation in which Chairs seek to bully the Budget and Appropriations Committee to the point that we cannot do our job well. I say this because I sit on that Committee.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

What is out of order, Member of Tinderet?

Thank you. Is Hon. Ochieng’ in order to say that Chairs of Committees who support the Budget and Appropriations Committee are bullying it, yet we actually offer a lot of support in all that we do as Departmental Committee Chairs? In fact, we make their work easier by breaking down issues in the departments. I think he should withdraw what he has said. We have never bullied the Budget and Appropriation Committee Chair. We have been interrogating the budgets. We have been very fair.

Hon. Ochieng’, kindly take note of the complementary role of Committees. I am the Vice-Chair of the Liaison Committee, and I would like to say that all Committee Chairs are very important.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, they can bully the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee, but they cannot bully me. They must stop bullying the Budget and Appropriations Committee. We must allow the Committee to do its job. Hon. Melly, you must allow the Budget and Appropriations Committee to interrogate the Report of your Departmental Committee once you present it. You must allow us to raise issues where we have some. That is the way it works.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

What is it, Hon. KJ?

I am just keen to know whether Hon. Ochieng’ is in order to address Chairperson Melly directly, while our Standing Orders are very clear as to who he should be addressing.

I was actually going to say I am very sorry for Hon. Melly.

I needed to say that Hon. Ochieng’ is on a very good trajectory. He is making a very good point, but to the wrong person. He is addressing it to the wrong individual. I just needed to find out if Hon. Ochieng’, an experienced Member

of this House, is in order to address the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Education instead of the Temporary Speaker.

Hon. Ochieng’, address the Temporary Speaker.

I am sorry if at all I addressed the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Education. I was addressing the Temporary Speaker of this Assembly. I know I have touched a raw nerve, but I do not care. We must ensure that the rules of this House are followed. We will not allow Departmental Committee Chairs to just do their things the way they want. Laws are there to be followed. I believe what we brought to this House is balanced. We will pass it. I request that the Budget that we approve here be implemented as passed. We do not want to find ourselves back here in the next one or two months with another Supplementary Budget undoing what we are doing today. The concerned departments, which have been given resources, should not come back to us with issues of low absorption or unimplemented projects. Let us implement the Budget so that our country can grow.

With those many remarks, I support the Motion.

Next is the Member for Funyula.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Reassure Hon. Atandi that he should not get goosebumps when he sees me standing. I am just doing my work as per Article 95 of the Constitution.

By practice, we have always had supplementary budgets. When the current Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning sat with us in the Assembly, he had very dim views about supplementary budgets. He used to say that they were a sign of poor planning and poor management of public resources. I concurred with him. Be that as it may, we now have a supplementary budget before us, on which I want to make a few observations.

The Supplementary Budget seeks to increase the overall Budget of the national Government to Ksh3 trillion from Ksh2.6 trillion. In essence, the Budget has been increased by close to Ksh400 billion. Allow me to select a few eyebrow-raising issues, which we need to interrogate as a country and as a House. Those issues raise the question of whether or not the Supplementary Budget is necessary.

First, Vote 1017 on State House Affairs will receive an increase of Ksh400 million for the acquisition of land for the State Lodge in Eldoret. To the best of my knowledge, the State Lodge in Eldoret has existed since I was born. I wonder what emerging issues have arisen that require a whopping Ksh400 million to purchase land for the State Lodge in Eldoret. I will leave it to Kenyans to decide whether or not that is a prudent use of public resources.

Secondly, Programme 0108000 on Crop Development and Management under Vote 1169 was alluded to much earlier. The Development Expenditure is increasing by Ksh158 million for the development of aggregation centres. Again, this is a block figure, which has not been segregated. The aggregation centres to be developed are not indicated. It is prudent to itemise development projects to keep track of them. Without a list of the aggregation centres being developed, everybody is left to imagine this is a way to divert public funds into private hands without any accounting. In any case, we need to know exactly where those aggregation centres are located. Are they in one area, or are they spread out throughout the country?

What was so difficult in itemising the aggregation centres as they did under Vote 1109, where they have indicated an increase of Ksh80 million for the development of the National Water Harvesting and Storage Authority and the payment of pending bills and unpaid commitments? They have set aside Ksh50 million for flood control and the construction of the West Kano dykes, and Ksh30 million for the construction of the River Nzoia–Budalangi dykes, which benefit me as a neighbour and the people of Ugenya and Alego Usonga.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, we have other curious allocations. This relates to Ksh100 million under Vote 1066 for primary education; Ksh10 million under Vote 1066 for secondary education; and Ksh100 million for secondary school infrastructure and primary school infrastructure. The block figure is not mentioned, and there is no segregation. It is not stated for which particular projects the funds are for. Perhaps when the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Education is given an opportunity to speak, he will tell us where those funds are going. We have asked these questions many times, but the answers have not been forthcoming.

We have also voted money under Vote 2091, increasing it by Ksh3 billion for AON Minet Kenya Limited to settle pending bills for teachers’ medical cover. This lends credence to reports across the country that teachers had no medical cover during that period. Whenever they sought medical services, they were turned away. I hope this particular matter will be resolved once and for all.

What is most scaring for many people in this country is what appears under Vote 1082. Vote 1082, under General Administration, provides for a reduction of Ksh1 billion from the Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illness Fund. We are told that the Social Health Authority (SHA) and the entire universal public health financing framework are working, yet there is a proposal to deduct a whopping Ksh1 billion from the Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illness Fund. When we were debating the Social Health Authority Bill here, we were led to believe that SHA would be far better than the defunct National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) and would provide universal health coverage, including critical illness care support. This Supplementary Budget, as required by law or practice, has many issues that, honestly speaking, we hope Kenyans themselves will review and pass their own verdict.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, allow me to turn to the elephant in the House: Article 223 of the Constitution of Kenya. The wording in the Constitution is explicitly clear. For the benefit of Kenyans, it states that, subject to Clauses (2) to (4), the national Government may spend money that has not been appropriated if the amount appropriated for any purpose under the Appropriation Act is insufficient or a need has arisen for expenditure for a purpose for which no amount has been appropriated by that Act.

I would imagine that, in preparing this Report, the Committee would have justified the expenditure under Article 223 of the Constitution of Kenya, amounting to Kshs101 billion. We would have expected the Report to clearly explain the emerging circumstances that necessitated such expenditure. Merely telling us that what had been appropriated was not enough, without justification, leaves us feeling that this matter requires interrogation. We need to be very clear here.

Let me tell the country who the beneficiaries of Article 223 of the Constitution of Kenya are. The Executive Office of the President has received Ksh900 million, another Ksh900 million and Ksh600 million, totalling about Ksh2.1 billion; the Office of the Deputy President has received Ksh750 million. One wonders what activities necessitated such expenditures, especially since they are not development expenditures but rather recurrent ones. It is, therefore, possible that the mandazi that people eat and the brown envelopes that people swing from the State House are in that matter. Then there is another sum of Ksh4.5 billion that has been spent by State House under Article 223. You cannot tell any Kenyan that an emergency arose at State House that necessitated spending Ksh4.5 billion. You are a good man, but just pray.

Your time is up. Next is Hon. Elachi.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I also rise to support the Motion, as I appreciate the Chair of the Departmental Committee on Budget and Appropriation for the Supplementary Budget before us.

[The Temporary Speaker (Hon. Martha Wangari) left the Chair] [The Temporary Speaker (Hon. Peter Kaluma) in the Chair] I start by just asking myself a few questions. If we really want to move forward as a country and do the right thing, KRA should completely reorganise itself. If KRA would like to see improvement, they have to agree. You cannot tell me that you have been waiting for 10 years to digitise. You have had the money and everything. Commissioners come and go, but to date, KRA has adamantly refused to ensure it can reduce tax evasion and corruption. At least they should ensure fairness across income groups as they go about it, especially when penalising. Make tax compliance simple. Simplify tax filing and use mobile-friendly systems. That is what we are just asking for. Provide clear guidelines in simple language so that more people can comply voluntarily. Integrate KRA systems with banks and mobile money services so we can move out of this cry everyone keeps talking about.

The most important thing we need to appreciate in this budget, even as I question a few things, is the security operations. I am happy that we have the Ksh2 billion for compensation of victims. I appreciate that so much, but as you modernise the police, it is important for us to also give them good cover. Our uniformed officers are suffering with their families. We do not need to lie. We need to rectify the situation. Where it is wrong, let us say so. We need to help the police. Yes, they have the SHA medical cover. Let them have an alternative cover, just the way teachers and workers in other institutions have both covers. Let us give the police those two covers so they do not find us very agitated. They do not speak to us directly about this problem, but they speak to other people, who tell us how they are suffering. The Cabinet Secretary must deal with this matter.

Imagine we are giving IEBC Ksh2 billion to settle pending legal bills. As much as we are very agitated, it is not right that an institution of government is being sued so much until we have to pay Ksh2.9 billion in pending legal bills. Looking at the education sector, we also have at least Ksh3.88 billion to clear outstanding university staff salaries. That is a plus for our Chairman and the Budget and Appropriations Committee, as this was included in the CBA for 2017 to 2021. Some of these things were supposed to be sorted out before the 2022 elections. It is also very unfortunate that sometimes we find ourselves in this crisis.

In the health sector, we find ourselves with Ksh4 billion to pay the defunct NHIF. I hope we will pay some of the hospitals, as they have really been pushing for payment. Parliament has now allocated the money. Can the relevant institutions ensure that they pay this money? Let them not come here again and tell us another story.

We have the money allocated to roads. I can see money for Nairobi City County, Kitale

and Dongo Kundu. Some of these projects were started even before we went

Hon. Elachi, I hope you will be hosting children from children’s homes during Easter, as you usually do. I hope you have the means to continue that legacy.

Next is Hon. Gabriel Tongoyo.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to support what I consider a balanced, responsive and people-centred Supplementary Budget as presented by my very good friend and the able Chair. Before I proceed, I wish to challenge the aspersion cast by Hon. Oundo, the Member for Funyula, regarding the State House expenditure. I wish to refer the House to Article 223 of the Constitution, which states that subject to clauses (2) to (4) , the national government may spend money that has not been appropriated if the amount appropriated for any purpose under the Appropriation Act is insufficient or a need has arisen for expenditure for a purpose for which no amount has been appropriated by that Act.

Article 223 provides for expenditure in case of emergencies or where the money allocated by this House is not sufficient. The Member for Funyula referred to Ksh4 billion spent by State House under Article 223. I wish to state that this was within the law. As Chairperson of the Committee that oversees the State House budget, and noting that you also

sit on that Committee, State House has presented a request for Ksh18 billion for the current financial year. However, only Ksh8 billion was allocated, representing roughly 50 per cent of the requirement. Accordingly, the additional expenditure under Article 223 was within the law.

Chair of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Affairs, we all understand that we have a different president this time. There are many infrastructure development projects going on. The president is travelling across the country. For example, he was in Homa Bay County the other day, and a new State Lodge will be constructed there. I am aware that the Maendeleo ya Wanawake initiative, with delegations from across the country, was in Homa Bay. Therefore, Chair, unlike before, you should not take a lot of time defending State House. In fact, it should be funded more.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, you are an astute lawyer and a very senior Member of this House. I will not add anything. For the record, Hon. Buyu Rozaah, who is also a Member of the Committee, can confirm that the State House Comptroller pleaded for additional resources during their Budget Estimates presentation because of insufficient allocation.

Turning to my contribution, I wish to commend the Budget and Appropriation Committee for the work done. I commend the Budget and Appropriations Committee, led by my very good friend, Hon. Atandi, whom the Hon. Speaker is on record saying is actually the best Chairperson of the Committee. I can confirm that fact. He is very consultative. Whenever there are changes, he reaches out to the Departmental Committee chairpersons. That is the spirit.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, could you add one minute, please?

No, no, you are just beginning. How many minutes do you need?

I was trying to respond to the other one.

You have over 10 minutes to go.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Two minutes are enough for me. This Budget is balanced, responsive and people-centred. I also commend the additional allocations to the Ministry, particularly in the Votes of Administration and Internal Security, and, more importantly, to the Modernisation Programme. We all know that our police officers are doing a good job. That money will help curb insecurity. There is the issue of cattle rustling in Kerio Valley in the North Rift region. More still needs to be done in the Isiolo and Meru corridor. They need the tools of service to be able to achieve their mandate. This should also happen in Lamu and the Boni Forest. I want to confirm to this House that we have very competent officers, if only they are well-resourced and equipped.

Equally, there is an additional allocation of about Ksh2 billion in support of victims of post-election violence. This is in line with the spirit of the Kenya Kwanza Government, which shows that they care for people who bear the brunt of post-election violence as they address injustices in this country. This is commendable, not to mention the money allocated to address disasters and emergencies such as flooding.

On the issue of education, there is an enhancement in university loans and money for lecturers to address the issue of CBA. You remember when the president was hosting an investors’ conference? One thing that stood out among the investors and speakers was how Kenya is blessed with human capital. This is therefore to continuously strengthen our human capital through financing the Ministry of Education.

On agriculture, there are increments aimed at addressing food security in the country, which is commendable. As a pastoralist, I appreciate that funds have been allocated to the restocking programme to address drought mitigation. As we know, most farmers and pastoralists lost livestock during the just-ended drought. On water and roads, I have seen an

enhanced increment. This will be important in ensuring that Kenya remains focused on its way to Singapore.

With those remarks, I support.

Thank you, Chairman. I hope you have adequately provided for the police, particularly the General Service Unit (GSU) . I also hope you addressed the issue of that hospital. I am now of a changed view after the presentations. They need money so that it can be operationalised.

Who is the next Chairperson of a Committee? Hon. Melly can now speak. I want to allocate much time to Chairpersons. As you proceed, Hon. Melly, let me remind the House that Chairpersons have up to 15 minutes, as you are speaking on behalf of the departments and ministries under your charge. Proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I want to first say that, as Chairpersons of Committees, we complement one another, including the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriation Committee. More importantly, there are some issues for which I want to laud the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriation Committee for the good work he has done. One of the things the Committee focused on during the preparation of this Supplementary Budget is policy, and more importantly, sticking to programmes from previous budgets that need to be completed.

As the appropriating House of the Republic, we need to know something. We are supposed to ensure that most of the big programmes, such as the Dongo Kundu Bypass Highway and the big road projects going on, such as the Mau Road Project, are factored into this Budget. These programmes were inherited from previous administrations, and this administration is supposed to complete them. I laud the Chair of the Budget and Appropriations Committee for consulting and, more importantly, for making sure that we complete such projects.

In the State Department for Higher Education, most Training and Vocational Education Training (TVETs) institutes have been allocated resources to complete them, especially those at 60 or 90 per cent completion. A number of them that had pending bills have also been allocated resources. That is a good indicator. Very soon, we will not see any of what we call “white elephant projects” or stalled projects if our appropriation budgets in the coming years go in that direction.

We have very pertinent programmes that have been taken care of, especially student financing. The Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) has been allocated Ksh15 billion for students’ loans. The TVETs have also been allocated some funds. In effect, they will ensure that students remain in class for the duration. In fact, through loans, scholarships and capitation, our universities will now not have many issues. We will want to see all students in the lecture halls. They will be out there carrying out their practicums.

We have also covered CBAs. We have a CBA for lecturers that was pending in the last phase. It has been provided for. We also owed teachers’ medical cover. Hon. Oundo asked why we are paying ION Minet. We are paying them because it is a pending bill. They have been providing services to teachers who have gone for treatment. The insurer has not been paid. It is very important for the House to note that we had a big pending bill with ION Minet, whose contract ended. They had to be paid for the services they rendered.

Money has also been paid to SHA for teachers’ medical cover. We are doing what we planned for as the Kenya Kwanza government. A number of programmes, such as examination fees set aside, have been paid to the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) . That means this year’s exams will go well.

All the programmes under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) have been provided for. Capitation to schools and grants from donors, amounting to hundreds of millions of shillings, lacked quality assurance and monitoring standards. The government has been

allocating resources to institutions from time to time, but no one could find out what was going on. I thank the Budget and Appropriations Committee for appropriating Ksh600 million for that purpose and Ksh200 million for capacity building and stakeholder engagement, so that the understanding of CBE across all sectors of this country reaches all counties. This Supplementary Budget has spoken to salary increases for police officers. Farmers got a big share, especially in terms of subsidised fertilisers. This is seen in the cost of food, which has come down.

When the cost of food goes down, it spurs growth. Nations that rely on food imports lose foreign income. Subsidised fertilisers encourage production. We will see increased maize and tea production, and the impact of the Ksh6 billion allocated to sugarcane reforms. I come from a sugarcane-growing area, and farmers are currently very happy. I thank Hon. Atandi and his Committee because sugarcane farmers are being paid every two weeks. The reforms are working. Families are receiving money every two weeks, enabling them to pay school fees and other expenses, as well as supporting farming activities. That is all as a result of well-thought-out sugar reforms.

The tea programme is also underway. An amount of money has been allocated to that programme, which we should support once it goes into effect. Just like coffee and sugar, tea is also part of the backbone of this country’s economy. Over 20 million people depend on tea farming for their livelihoods. If we ensure that tea farmers are paid as well as sugarcane and coffee farmers, they will have pesa mfukoni. We should ensure that all our farmers enjoy such benefits.

The Supplementary Budget has addressed many infrastructure projects. I laud the Budget and Appropriations Committee for the good work. I have seen many projects earmarked for completion, including highways, housing infrastructure, and some energy-sector projects. We experience many power outages, especially in the evening, which affect industrial growth and the manufacturing sector. If we do not invest in energy, we will not achieve our goal of becoming a First World country. Huge investments in the energy sector are paramount for both small-scale and large-scale industries. The ICT sector relies heavily on energy. The Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee has allocated sufficient resources to ensure that the country has the necessary infrastructure in place to move forward. This Supplementary Budget was prepared through consultations, teamwork and input from the Departmental Committees. Members spoke in unison about the direction to take.

With those many remarks, I support the Motion.

Next is Hon. Rozaah Buyu, on a special request.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I came before the Member who is complaining. I thank you for giving me this opportunity to contribute to the Motion.

What stands out to me is the Ksh2 billion allocated for the compensation of victims. My late party leader, Hon. Raila Amollo Odinga, fought for that. It was one of the last things that he held onto because he knew that many Kenyans had lost their lives, others had suffered, and they needed compensation. I am happy that Ksh2 billion has been set aside for compensation.

As a staunch member of the Broad-Based Government, I am not very happy this evening. It is true that the Budget and Appropriations Committee has the final mandate to present the Supplementary Budget to the House, but I do not underestimate the role of the various departmental committees in informing the Budget and Appropriations Committee. Departmental committees interrogate and engage with the Semi-Autonomous Government Agencies (SAGAs) and the various State Departments to determine whether the main budget in question is performing well or underperforming. If so, why and what can be done about it?

That is why we have Supplementary Estimates. However, I want to support Hon. Nzengu, who spoke first. I sit in the Committee of Blue Economy like him. Blue Economy deals with water as a commodity. Water is scarce in many parts of this country, yet it is a necessity for all human beings. We know that water remains scarce in many parts of this country. What the Committee does is interrogate…

Ignore his consultations and address the nation.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, what the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy does is to look at how well the main Budget has performed. In cases where there is a great need for water, the Committee looks at whether the available budget on different items has been consumed or well utilised. If there is a surplus, the Committee directs the allocation to other areas that are in need. However, the recommendations of the Committee have been ignored. By and large, on what is in the Supplementary Budget, I am particularly annoyed with one project.

If you look at the Northern Water Works, the approved Estimate for Financial Year 2025/2026 was Ksh213 million. An additional allocation of Ksh400 million has been made to it in this Supplementary Budget No. 1, bringing its total budget to Ksh613 million, two months before we begin discussing the main Budget for the next financial year. When we questioned the Principal Secretary (PS) of the Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation, he categorically stated that the project was complete. Our question was, what was the Ksh613 million for if the project was complete? Why must we give an additional Ksh400 million to the Ksh200 million it already had, bringing the total to Ksh613 million, yet the project was already complete? The Committee left it with Ksh200 million and reallocated the rest to other needy areas where projects had been started but not completed.

As we speak, the Northern Water Pram has a pending bill of Ksh1.5 billion. We heard the Chair of the Budget and Appropriations Committee say that pending bills are an issue. The Supplementary Budget should address pending bills as much as possible. Why can that money not be put into the payment of pending bills to reduce them, instead of leaving it for a project that is already complete? The previous speakers have pointed out that a Supplementary Budget is supposed to close gaps and allocate funds to needs that were previously ignored. What is being practised is totally different.

I also want to address myself to Article 223 of the Constitution. I am also a Member of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security. I am going to repeat what I said during the proceedings of the Committee. Article 223 is being misused. Article 223 is supposed to be used for unforeseen emergencies that have occurred and need to be dealt with. However, Article 223 is being misused across ministry departments. That means when you come up with the budget, whether you give a State Department money or not, they will use Article 223 to get the money that they asked for in the budget but did not get. The same State Department still comes back to seek funding through Supplementary Estimates. So, what are we budgeting for? What is the role of budgeting? Article 223 is being misused. You cannot tell me that it will be used for visits or functions. That is not an emergency, especially at a time when the country is grappling with difficult economic conditions. Kenyans must see prudent use of their money. Funds are drawn from the Consolidated Fund, under Article 223, for items that can wait. In some instances, the withdrawals are made three weeks before a Supplementary Budget is brought to the House. Why does it not wait so that the money can be sought through

the Supplementary Budget process? The only reason I can see is that under Article 223, prior approval is not required. Approval is only sought after the money has been spent.

My humble advice to Parliament is that we must take Article 223 seriously. We must ensure that no one takes advantage of it, otherwise it renders our work useless and undermines the budget-making process. As much as I may sound harsh, I wish to congratulate the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee for his accessibility. When you call him, look for him, or make queries, he is open and willing to listen. The only problem is that what you ask for may not find its place in this budget, because Article 223 has swallowed it whole. Alternatively, it may not find its place because new projects that are not so relevant to the people have been included in the budget.

I will speak about these new projects. Regarding irrigation and water, Ksh8 billion has been allocated to new projects, yet ongoing projects are not being completed. Why allocate another Ksh8 billion for new projects? How do Kenyans get value for their money? Is it not better to complete projects that have already been started before allocating Ksh8 billion to new ones? What guarantee is there that these new projects will be completed, given the pattern of starting projects without completing them and then initiating new ones?

I urge prudence. At a time when resources are scarce, whatever little money is available must deliver value to Kenyans.

Thank you.

Hon. Makali Mulu, proceed because of rank. I have been giving priority to the Chairpersons of Departmental Committees so they may speak on behalf of their respective departments. Hon. Kangogo Bowen, do not rise to speak about infrastructure and roads. Speak about water.

Hon. Makali Mulu, proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I have listened to Hon. Rozaah Buyu, and I wish we were all speaking as she has. As a House, at times, I sit here and find that we are a let-down to this country when it comes to budget making. I sit on that Committee. Therefore, when I speak, I do so from experience.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Hon. Kangogo Bowen, why can we not avoid points of order?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, is it in order for Hon. Makali Mulu to say that he is a frustrated Member of this House, yet he is a Member of the Budget and Appropriations Committee? I have appeared before him together with Hon. Atandi, and he has not presented a dissenting or minority report on this Supplementary Budget. If it is true that he is frustrated, has he presented a minority or dissenting report on this Supplementary Budget, given that he is a member and he participated in its approval?

Hon. Makali, proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. We joined this House together with Hon. Kangogo, and he knows that you have been here long enough. If you review the budget reports discussed since 2013, Hon. Kangogo, you will agree that the abuse of Article 223 has consistently been a serious issue, including when the current Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Economic Planning, Hon. Mbadi, was here. When he was appointed Cabinet Secretary, we hoped he would ensure a reduction in the use of Article 223 of the Constitution. Hon. Temporary Speaker, at one point, you were part of the discussions in this House about making regulations on the use of Article 223 of the Constitution so that we start adding value. Unfortunately, it has never happened. Hon. Kangogo, there is a difference between talking and acting. We have been very good at talking without acting.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, allow me to put this Supplementary Budget into context. We are discussing Supplementary Budget I, and from the figures, there is an increase of Ksh363 billion. We have projected an increase of Ksh29 billion in revenue. At the end of February, we were short of Ksh150 billion in revenue. That means by June, we expect to collect the total expected amount and an additional Ksh29 billion. As of now, we are negative by Ksh150 billion. The question is, how realistic are these figures? We have high expectations, and it is good to be hopeful, but we are increasing expenditure while not increasing revenue collection at the same rate.

What has happened to the budget deficit? I see people talk about their Departmental Committees here, but they are not talking about the overall budget deficit. That is where the problem is. We have moved the budget deficit from 4.8 per cent of GDP to 6.2 per cent of GDP. To make it worse, most of this increase will be funded through domestic borrowing. My colleagues and I have debated this in the Committee.

The Cabinet Secretary of the National Treasury and Economic Planning tells us that domestic borrowing is becoming easier due to dropping interest rates, and that most banks are very liquid, meaning that they can now buy our Treasury Bills and Bonds. Hon. Members, this week, the Controller of Budget said that if we are not careful, we are likely to default on paying our debts because we are expected to pay Ksh3.6 trillion in this one year. What does that mean? Why Ksh3.6 trillion in one year? It is basically because we have switched from borrowing externally to domestic borrowing, which has a shorter repayment period. That means we have to keep on paying. So, what is happening? Every time, we borrow to pay loans which are due because they are rolling over on an annual basis.

Hon. Members, anytime we discuss budgets, let us not just talk about our own departments. Let us also look at the overall budget framework. I get very concerned when I see the budget deficit moving from 4.8 per cent to 6.4 per cent of the GDP. We are making our budget deficit a moving target, and therefore, we cannot plan. We know what we are doing by not planning. Hon. Members, Kenya is at a cliff in matters of public debt. We almost defaulted, and if we continue with this trend, we should not be surprised when we are classified with countries that are not getting their public debt right.

Even as we demand more, to me, the most critical thing we should be doing is prioritising our expenditure. I heard Hon. Rozaah question how we are spending our money. That is a question we are not asking ourselves as Departmental Committee Chairs and as Members of Parliament. We should be able to nit-pick what does not make sense to a country which is borrowing money. In cases where we are using our money, there is no problem, but we have to be careful when we are using borrowed money.

Hon. Members, I plead with you that we start looking at where we are directing our resources, particularly borrowed resources. The Controller of the Budget stated that we are paying commitment fees on loans we have signed, yet we are not drawing from them. Why would a country borrow a loan and not use it? This is a critical issue that we cannot run away from.

There is also the issue of pending bills. We have had committees tasked with pending bills, which I think are a joke. They come and say that certain bills should be paid, and others should not. Yet this country is choking on pending bills; we are dying. The people affected by this are small-scale businesspeople who have worked and supplied goods to the government. Some of them have taken loans and are being auctioned, and others are dying of high blood pressure. Hon. Members, these things are happening to the people whom we represent. We cannot take this lightly.

We must also discuss governance issues. Some of them are controversial, but I will still state them since I have immunity on the Floor of this House. We claim to use the money, but

the level of corruption in the budgets will kill this country. I agree with Hon. Rozaah Buyu on this issue; she spoke like a serious Kenyan.

I listened to the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Health say that only one radiotherapy machine at Kenyatta Hospital is working. That is what our cancer patients depend on. People are queuing there for up to four months to be treated. Yet, we have allocated Ksh400 million to purchase additional land for the Statehouse. How can we proceed with buying the land while a radiotherapy machine costs Ksh450 million? If it is your mother dying of cancer and you are made to choose between buying land and buying the machine to treat your mother, which would you choose?

We have nothing against the government; all we are asking is for the resources to be utilised well. I know we do this here through voting, since democracy provides that the majority has its way and the minority is listened to. Even as we adopt democracy, Members need to know that Kenyans are watching, and they are smart. They can look at this budget and see where we could have done better. We need to allocate funds where our people feel they belong.

You heard Members like Eng. Nzengu and Rozaah Buyu complain about the Committee Chaired by Hon. Kangogo. The question is, these are the same projects we brought to the Committee and approved, yet they are diverting money to different areas. There should be an explanation. As a committee, we were not convinced. Even as we speak of individual committees, we should not forget the bigger picture of the budget-making process. If we do that, we will indeed help this country.

We should have provided resources for drought management and flood mitigation. Floods have damaged our roads, and we have not allocated any money to repair them. These are the hard questions we should ask ourselves.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I submit. Thank you for this opportunity.

Hon. Kangogo Bowen, followed by Hon. John Kiarie and then the Chair of the Departmental Committee on Energy. Do not take too much time, since we have less than 40 minutes left before closing this debate.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Firstly, I commend the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee, Hon. Atandi. He is a consultative chairperson, and through our interactions with him and the committee, we have agreed on some areas and later reached an agreement on others.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, you directed us to speak specifically to the areas we oversee. I am the Chairperson overseeing the Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation and also the Ministry of Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs. Water is a basic right according to Article 43 of our Constitution. We meet as a committee to allocate resources to the water sector because many Kenyans lack access to water at home.

In the last Parliament, we adopted a system that installed a transformer at every primary and secondary school in the country. As a committee, we had a proposal before this House to adopt the same approach in the water sector. That is to bring water to almost every school so that communities within the schools could be supplied with water, just like the Last Mile Connectivity Project (LMCP) .

The second issue is that, as a committee, we proposed in the last Parliament and in the current 13th Parliament that, if possible, each constituency in Kenya be allocated only Ksh100 million to address water issues. This is almost Ksh29 billion, compared to putting one dam at one corner of the country, costing Ksh40 million and running for 100 years. There is a dam we put up in the Thwake River, which cost Ksh34 billion. It started almost 12 years ago, and to this day, even the locals still have no access to water. However, with Ksh29 billion, every constituency has access to that money specifically for water. We will build boreholes and water pans in Northern Kenya and other arid areas. This will ensure every community has access to water rather than diverting resources to one or two corners of the country.

Coming to the Supplementary Estimates, we scrutinised this budget, as you heard my colleagues speak about it, by inviting the ministries and principal secretaries to appear before us. At one point, we did not agree with the figures they were presenting, as they differed. What the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) had submitted was different from what came out. Nevertheless, we harmonised and agreed as a committee, did a report and submitted it.

However, what we have seen is not exactly what we submitted, as Hon. Members have said. We need to re-examine the role of a committee. We are the ones who have sat down as the first line Members interacting with the institutions. The institutions have appeared before us and told us what they require, but what ends up in the report is different.

Thirdly, the Principal Secretary for the State Department for Water and Sanitation went on record in Hansard during the committee meeting, before the committee members. The proposals or the budget submitted to the National Treasury and Economic Planning are not what came to this House. It is completely different. That means there were some amendments to the ministry’s budget, which was submitted to the National Treasury and Economic Planning. The Principal Secretary told us that some completed projects had been allocated more money than the contract’s total. If the National Treasury is making the budget, then we must be told. Fourthly, the amendments brought by the National Treasury to this House must be scrutinised by the committee. Why have they brought them without the scrutiny of the committee?

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

What is out of order, Leader of the Majority Party?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I do not want to cut the Chair short because I believe he is speaking from knowledge. If we get case examples, the House will benefit. I would be very keen to know whether the National Treasury has allocated additional funds to a complete project, as alleged by the Chair. Yet, the line ministry has not allocated any money to it. This will be a clear case of corruption unless there were pending bills for that project that the National Treasury considered should be settled. Otherwise, I wish the Chair could give us specific examples of such cases because Kenyans listen to everything we say on this Floor of the House. That is why our Standing Orders require us to substantiate.

The request made by the Leader of the Majority Party is fair.

Hon. Kangogo should furnish the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee with the specific cases where the National Treasury has allocated money on a complete project, as alleged, that does not require money. Let me be honest, Hon. Temporary Speaker, because accounting officers have this tendency. Some of them want kickbacks from projects. They do not want to allocate money to completed projects because they have likely been given kickbacks. They want new projects that will give them kickbacks. Let us not bury our heads in the sand at all. I want Hon. Kangogo to furnish me with the details, on record, tomorrow before we finish consideration of the Supplementary Appropriation Bill.

He will tell us the projects on record now.

He must give us specific examples so that we do not cast aspersions on people in offices who are not here to defend themselves.

Leader of the Majority Party has made his point. Hon. Kangogo.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I will submit those projects, but I want to single out two. I am unable to pronounce the names properly, but there are two or three projects. A new water pan is indeed allocated Ksh250 million in Northern Kenya. It is in this budget. I do not remember the name. The Principal Secretary for Water and Sanitation, Mr Korir, appeared before us and said he did not budget for those projects. There is another one for Ksh50 million. He said that the National Treasury allocated money to these projects. He said it on record. We have The Hansard; all our committee proceedings are always recorded.

Let Hon. Kangogo speak. He will help Parliament by identifying those projects so that we can knock them off.

Yes, Members of my Committee are here.

We should allocate the money to higher-priority areas. Please conclude.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, Members of the Committee are here, and we will single out the projects. I cannot pronounce their names, but I will submit them tomorrow morning.

When you submit them, you will help the House a great deal. Hon. Makali has said we need to buy equipment for cancer treatment. We can knock off those projects and take the money there if it has not been allocated.

Exactly. Hon. Temporary Speaker, if you check the water projects in this Budget, there are so many which cost millions: Ksh300 million and Ksh200 million. These were not subjected to the committee for scrutiny. When we called the Principal Secretary, he said he was unaware of them. That is known. It is in the Hansard. That is why I say there is a problem at the National Treasury; it cannot appropriate. Once they have given us a ceiling and the ministry has worked within it, the National Treasury has no business giving us new projects or allocating any money, especially in the Supplementary Budget. If there is new money, amendments should be brought to this House or to the Committee for scrutiny.

Are you done?

No. There is a point of order.

No, I have not allowed it. Can you be done?

Sorry. Let me finish, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Number two…

Oh, that is the Chairman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee. What is out of order?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I did not intend to disrupt the good presentation by the Hon. Kangogo Bowen, the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy and Irrigation. He has made very important points. The only area I need him to correct is the insinuation that the National Treasury cannot add new projects. That is the only area he needs to check, because the Presidency can add new projects to the budget through the National Treasury.

The President can visit any part of the country, and citizens can request him for a project. He can then use the National Treasury to add those projects to the Budget. That needs to be clarified. Otherwise...

Chairman of the Budget and Appropriation Committee, you made your point, and it is correct. Hon. Kangogo, can you conclude?

It is true, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I agree with the Hon. Atandi. The President can issue a pronouncement, and the National Treasury then factors it in. What I am saying is that the new additions from the National Treasury must be subjected to committee scrutiny. This is because we understand…

This is because we understand the sector much more. In the last financial year, we know we allocated money to that project and how much it was…

Okay, let me be informed by...

Hon. Kangogo Bowen, why are you running this House?

I think I have made my point. I am saying that we need to respect the committees.

You have made the point, and it is understood. Do you have any new points to make?

We need to respect the work of committees.

You have Ksh1.5 billion in pending bills and another Ksh1.8 billion in new projects. Yet when we try to correct that, it is rubbished.

You cannot stand on a point of order when the Member is done. Hon. John Kiarie was to follow. Hon. Chairpersons, could you reduce your contributions to under 10 minutes each?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I stand well guided. I thank you for the opportunity to contribute to this very important debate in Parliament. Allow me to start by commending the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee for such amazing work that he has done. Work that has been so consultative across sectors, up to and including involving the Chairpersons of the different Departmental Committees in the budget-making process. I also commend and congratulate the Budget and

Appropriations Committee and the membership that I see, even in the House, as we debate this late into the evening. They stand for what is required, especially by...

(Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah and Hon. Bowen Kangogo consulted loudly)

Hon. Speaker, protect me from the Leader of the Majority Party.

Order! Hon. Members.

Protect me from my neighbour Hon. Kimani wa Ichung’wah.

Leader of the Majority Party, let us consult in tones that allow Members to make their contributions.

I appreciate, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I was congratulating the Budget and Appropriations Committee for the process they have taken to get us to where we are. I also said that this time round, the process has been so consultative across the sectors. That is much appreciated because it speaks to the good work of our Constitution, which commits budgeting and appropriations to this House and not to any other quarters anywhere in the country.

When I appeared before the Budget and Appropriations Committee, I made a critical point: Kenya needs to embrace zero-based budgeting. This is because what we have done with incremental budgeting speaks to the issues raised by Hon. Kangogo Bowen. This country needs to tidy up its budget books and adopt zero-based budgeting each year so we can clear up all the issues raised by the Chairman of the water sector.

The Budget and Appropriations Committee recommendations on the digitalisation and digitisation of tax matters at the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) are critical. What is needed now is for us to bring equitable taxation to our people. As we speak, only around 20 per cent of Kenyans pay 80 per cent of the taxes. This has been happening because we do not have a digital system at KRA. We ended up with problems where we are overburdening a certain percentage of our population. This is to a very great extent that, even when budget issues are being canvassed, some people might not feel the heat that this House feels when we go to the taxation of a very small minority at the expense of a very big majority.

It must be said that technology…

What is this caucus of Chairpersons about? You are distracting your colleague, Hon. John Kiarie.

I was supporting what has been said by the Chairman, Hon. Kuria Kimani, that digitisation at KRA is critical. As a country, we are burdening 20 per cent of our population with over 80 per cent of the taxation. What needs to happen at KRA is to walk the path of digitisation. This is because we have tools and equipment today that allow us to tidy up our budget books so that every person carries their fair share of taxation.

Let me now go into sector-related issues. As Members of the Departmental Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation, we would like the Budget and Appropriations Committee to prioritise, in the main Budget. The very critical issues and recommendations that were not accommodated in the Supplementary Budget but rightly belong in the main Budget.

By doing so, we will be able to cover the gap left by the accruals in previous budgets in our sector.

It is a sector that is becoming increasingly critical. It should be considered among the bigger sectors. So, when we are budgeting and saying that we have a big sector called agriculture, we ought to see the digital economy as a very critical sector that cuts across all the sectors that we call main sectors. It must be said from the floor of this House that the National Treasury must fully consider the recommendations brought by the state departments. So that we can ensure that, while they are cutting budgets, they do not cut those of very critical areas or ongoing projects, and instead favour projects being called pending projects, and so on.

To alleviate this issue, it would be so easy for us as Parliament, when we are processing the 2026/2027 Budget Estimates. We call upon the National Treasury to submit to the Budget and Appropriations Committee its report on the National Treasury Spending Bills Verification Committee. So, we can review, scrutinise, and report to the House what these confirmed pending bills are, to stop them from being kicked down the road in every subsequent budget.

In the interest of time, allow me to say that this House should ensure that, as we pass budgets, the targets presented are credible, so that the projects and programmes we pass here are properly costed. I have much to say, especially in our sector, but in the interest of other Members who would like to contribute, let me end by congratulating the Budget and Appropriations Committee. I look forward to the main Budget of 2026/2027, where we should implement some of the things…

Hon. David Gikaria.

Asante sana, Mhe. Spika wa Muda, kwa kunipa nafasi hii kuongea kuhusu Supplementary Budget ambayo iko mbele yetu. Nichukue nafasi hii kumshukuru Mwenyekiti wa Kamati hii ya Bajeti na Uidhinishaji wa Matumizi kwa kuweza kuongea na kamati tofauti tofauti. Wakati tunapomtafuta kwa kamati yake, anakuwa mwepesi wa kupatikana na kuweza kunong’onezana na kubadilishana mawazo naye. Nichukue nafasi hii kumwambia asante sana kwa kazi nzuri ambayo anafanya kwa kuweza kuendesha kamati hii kwa njia ambayo inafaa.

Pili, ni pengine tupate mwelekeo kutoka kwa Bunge, hasa kwa Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning na Idara ya Bajeti. Kila wakati tunapoenda mbele ya Kamati ya Bajeti na Uidhinishaji wa Matumizi, huwa wakati hizi ministries na departments wanapokuja mbele yetu, wanatupatia vitu ambavyo wangependa zifanyike. Kwa kimombo wanaita wish list. Tunapoteza wakati mwingi kusikiliza wale Principal Secretaries na mawaziri wakitaka waongezewe hela, ilhali mfuko wa Serikali hauna nafasi ya kuweza kuongeza hela hata kidogo. Kwa hivyo, pia ni muhimu kwa Kamati hii ya Bajeti waweze kutupatia mwelekeo iwapo hii wish list ambayo tunapeana mbele ya kamati kama inatakikana ama tuachane nayo na tuangazia mambo muhimu ambayo yanakuja mbele ya kamati.

Wacha niongelee pia kuhusu mambo ambayo tunaita public participation. Tunajua kupitia the Public Finance Management Act, ama sheria ambayo inaangazia masuala ya fedha katika nchi hii, the PFM Act, inaangazia asilimia kumi peke yake, na isibadilike zaidi ya asilimia kumi. Lakini tunapoona inapita ile kiwango, maswali ambayo yanakuja mbele yetu ni, je, inafaa tena turudi kwa wale wananchi? Kwa sababu bajeti nzima imepita imeweza kutolewa maoni na wananchi, je, wakati inapita asilimia ile inayokubalika na PFM Act, inafaa irudi kwa mwananchi ili aweze kutoa maoni yake ndiyo tuweze kupitisha kitu chochote ambacho kinapita kile kiwango?

Kwa hivyo, ni muhimu tunajua kuna sheria ambayo inakuja hapa kuhusiana na mambo ya utoaji wa maoni ya Wakenya kuhusu chochote kile. Tukiongezea mambo ya bajeti, ndiyo tuweze kujua kama ikipita zaidi ya hela fulani ama asilimia zaidi ya kumi, je, inafaa turudi pale?

Ya tatu, na hii imeongelewa. Ni muhimu, hii Wizara ya Fedha ichukulie maanani kidogo mambo ambayo yanaongelewa hapa katika Bunge la Taifa. Serikali hii imeangazia uzalishaji wa stima ama umeme kwa nguvu sana. Ndiposa tulienda tukatoa vile vikwazo vilivyokuwa vimewekwa hapo awali. Kwa wakati huu tunakuza megawati 3,000 pekee, lakini Rais ametuambia kuwa nchi hii kama ni lazima tuendelee na tufikie kiwango cha zile nchi ambazo zimeendelea; na ni lazima tuanze kuangazia uzalishaji wa stima ili tufikie kama megawati 10,000. Lakini ilitughadhabisha kidogo kama Kamati wakati tulipogundua kwamba katika bajeti hii m’badala, Ksh1.5 bilioni zilitolewa katika Olkaria 1 Rehabilitation Project, ambayo imefikia asilimia 95 kumalizika, na ingetuzalishia megawati 80. Na hiyo ingekuwa imeanza kufanya kazi mwezi wa sita. Tunajiuliza, je katika Wizara ya Fedha kuna kupoteza mwelekeo kidogo na kukosa kuangazia yale maono ya Serikali? Kwa sababu ikiwa Olkaria 1 Rehabilitation Project ingepewa zile hela, ingeweza kukamilisha mwezi wa sita na tuzalishe megawati 80.

Kwa hivyo, ni muhimu hawa watu wa Wizara ya Fedha wawe makini, kwa sababu wanatughadhabisha sana. Nimekuwa Mwenyekiti kwa muda kabla uongozi mwingine haujaondolewa. Na walikuwa wanatuma wawakilishi wa Wizara ya Fedha katika Kamati zetu zote ili waweze kutuelezea ni kwa nini wanaondoa. Lakini siku hizi... Ningependa Kamati husika walazimishe wale viongozi wahusika kutoka Wizara ya Fedha kufika mbele yetu. Tunapoelezewa na Wizara za kwetu, kuwe kuna mtu mmoja ambaye anatoka pale ndipo aweze kusikia. Kama hii tungewauliza kwa nini wanaondoa Ksh1.5 bilioni ikiwa mradi uliofikia asilimia 95, na ungeweza kuzalisha stima ambayo tunataka kuzalisha kama nchi na tuweze kuendelea.

Pia, katika sekta yetu ya umeme, pesa nyingi zinazopatikana ni za kigeni. Zile zinazowekezwa hapa lakini ziko na masharti. Ile inayoitwa condition precedence, kwamba Serikali ya Kenya ni lazima iwekeze kiwango fulani ndipo iweze kupewa zile hela. Lakini unapata tunaziweka kwenye bajeti lakini hela hazifikii Wizara ile. Kwa hivyo, inabidi wawekezaji kutoka nje waziondoe zile pesa na tunaendelea kukandamiza mambo ambayo yanaendelea. Hivyo ni muhimu kwa Wizara ya Fedha, tukiweka pesa ambazo Serikali inafaa kutoa, ihakikishe ya kwamba hizo pesa zinapatikana.

Mhe. Spika, wacha niseme kuhusu sekta ambazo zimeongelewa kwa wingi, haswa sekta ya mafuta. Tuko na idara inaitwa National Oil Cooperation of Kenya (NOCK). Kama Kamati tumejaribu sana kuifufua, kuipatia uwezo, na kuiinua ili tuweze kupata manufaa. Lakini hii idara lazima iangaliwe, haswa kwa sababu ya kuweka akiba ya mafuta katika nchi yetu. Nampongeza Waziri kwa sababu amekuja mbele ya Kamati na ametuhakikishia kwamba tuna mafuta ya kutosha mwezi wa tatu na wa nne. Kwa hivyo, hatuna wasiwasi kama vile Mjumbe mmoja ametisha ama kuelekeza Serikali ati ya kwamba “wasijaribu”. Leader of Majority Party hapa ametueleza kwamba hakuna wasiwasi. Itakuwa vigumu sana kukosa mafuta.

Naishukuru Serikali kwa kuleta haya maneno ya mafuta yaitwayo Government-to- Government (G2G). Huo mfumo umetusaidia kufanya bei ya mafuta kubaki pale ilipo. Kuna mengi ambayo ningependa kusema. Lakini, wacha niseme kwamba mtandao wa umeme nchini ni asilimia 76.

Mhe. Spika wa Muda, najua asilimia ya connectivity iko chini sana kwako kwenyewe. Kijumla katika nchi nzima, serikali yetu imeunganisha asilimia 76. Lakini tunajua kuna seheme ambazo zinafaa kuangaliwa kupitia kile tunaita affirmative action. Tunasema sehemu kama North Eastern ziangaliwe katika Supplementary Budget.

Hon. Mutunga,

Thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the budget debate. I will start by thanking the Budget and Appropriations Committee for its good work. I was on that Committee in the first term. I remember it was not an easy process to listen to all the departmental committees and make sense of what they said. Coming up with a budget that people do not complain about is not easy, at the end of the day.

The agricultural sector is one of the most terribly underfunded in this country. Sometimes we should ask ourselves whether it is necessary to give agriculture money early enough. I am saying this for a reason. If we allocate Ksh8 billion to the Fertiliser Subsidy Programme at the beginning of a financial year, and we know for sure it requires Ksh19 billion, we must get Ksh11 billion somewhere along the way. Farmers will need fertiliser to plant. Therefore, we must get that money before the end of the year.

That is where you realise Article 223 comes in handy. I think it is not really fair to this country to stand in this House and say that Article 223 is misused. Some things are new and different. They come in somewhere along the way, and they have to be sorted out. One of them is like meeting the due cost of importing fertiliser in time for farmers to use for planting or subsidising when it comes to issues like seeds.

This Supplementary Budget includes a Ksh2 billion subsidy for the Kenya Seed Company to lower seed prices. This is important for Kenyans because it enables them to use quality seeds to plant. Part of that money is supposed to be used to pay a debt incurred last year due to a subsidy. The rest of the money is supposed to go toward reducing seed costs this year.

As a Committee, we insisted on having a procedure for utilising this subsidy so that it follows the fertiliser distribution subsidy. The fertiliser’s last-mile distribution process is embodied in using the Kenya Integrated Agricultural Management Information System (KIAMIS) data. This data has the number of farmers in this country. Farmers registered their parcels of land. Of course, we know the fertiliser consumption per acre, whether it is planting fertiliser or top dressing.

In that case, there is a clear procedure for estimating how much fertiliser someone can buy at any one time. In the same tone and design, we, as a Committee, have agreed and recommended that seed subsidisation must follow the provisions of the KIAMIS data so that we may determine the amount of seed per acre. We do not just put money into the seed sector and end up subsidising seeds in other countries. Unscrupulous traders can buy large quantities of subsidised seeds from the Kenya Seed Company and cross the border with them. Therefore, we shall subsidise seeds in Uganda, South Sudan, and other countries. That is not the purpose of the Government of Kenya.

This budget has come in to support a few very important areas in agriculture, such as the subsidies I have talked about, and to address the sugar sector. We have set aside some resources to pay part of the staff dues for the leased-out sugar processing plants. That is important because that provision was not there at the beginning. When the National Treasury presented the policy document to this House, we discussed it. We agreed to begin by waiving existing debts, paying farmers, freeing them from those burdens, and later settling staff dues. However, we have realised that we need to scrutinise that sub-sector much more closely because staff dues continue to increase. It is interesting to note that some of those matters were not identified at that time. The costs were not properly computed. Costs relating to end-of-term dues, accrued obligations, insurance, and other liabilities have since emerged and increased that particular provision.

The agriculture sector faces many challenges that require support, key among them being the research system. Kenya has one of the most elaborate research systems in Africa, and some of the most highly educated personnel, but our research system does not receive sufficient funding. The Committee was unable to provide the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) with what it requires. That is why we requested the Budget and Appropriations

Committee to consider reallocating funds from another sector to provide the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO) with about Ksh500 million, which it requires for personnel emoluments, as it does not even have sufficient funds for that purpose.

KALRO was expanded during the 2013 amalgamation. KARI became KALRO, thus bringing many other commodity-based research institutions under one umbrella. Therefore, the costs escalated. Some of those research institutions have not been generating revenue. The original KARI may have generated income from seed production and other sources, but the larger institution has been unable to generate sufficient revenue to support itself adequately.

Notably, we now have several State corporations in the agricultural sector that have become solvent and can raise Appropriation-in-Aid (A-in-A), which is sufficient to cover their own budgets. The Committee has been examining their progress, and there is a possibility that some of them may contribute to the Exchequer by remitting additional resources to the National Treasury.

Finally, instead of waiting to be driven by need, let us take our cue from other African countries such as Rwanda and Ethiopia, which fund their agricultural sectors at close to 10 per cent and are recording double-digit growth. We need to recognise that most people in this country depend on the agricultural sector, which must then receive adequate funding. About 70 per cent of people employed in rural areas depend on agriculture. About 40 per cent of the total employees in our country are in the agricultural sector. Agriculture remains our leading foreign exchange earner and one of the greatest contributors to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP). All those factors require sustained funding if they are to improve and continue supporting the economy. Therefore, let us adequately fund the agricultural sector.

Hon. Robert Basil.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for allowing me to contribute to the Supplementary Budget, which is supposed to fund ongoing projects. For example, we are currently constructing a sports academy in my area. A Supplementary Budget is also intended to fund emerging needs, such as drought responses, flood relief, and other urgent national requirements. A Supplementary Budget is also supposed to strengthen security and support other issues that are putting economic pressure on the nation, including social protection programmes.

Looking at the Supplementary Budget, I noticed that the very areas where we are doing well are also those that still require further improvement. I will begin with the areas in which we are performing well, one of which is funding the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions. For young people to survive in today’s world, they must acquire skills. TVETs are among the institutions that we are supposed to champion, promote and cherish as a House. When I see funds allocated to TVETs in the budget, I am pleased and applaud the Chair of the Budget and Appropriations Committee.

Another area we are doing well in is the school feeding programme. In this Supplementary Budget, we have allocated money for the school feeding programme because we know its importance. Most of us in this House enjoyed maziwa ya nyayo during the Moi era. When he left the office, that disappeared. Through the school feeding programme, we will improve the quality of education and support learner retention.

Importantly, I have also noticed we are doing very well in this Supplementary Budget with respect to security. We have budgeted a reasonable amount of money for the police. We know security is a fundamental element in the growth of any economy. We cannot have growth in our country if we do not factor in security. I have noticed that the police have been budgeted appropriately, though more funds should be allocated to them.

There are areas where we need to improve, and I will begin with Energy. Energy is a key sector. For sure, if we connect many households to electricity, we will have many

customers who will contribute to this country's revenue. Most rural areas are lagging in energy matters. So, it is important, as a House, that we appropriate funds and increase funding for energy, particularly for rural electricity connections.

Another area where we need to do a little bit better is on roads. Most rural roads are in poor condition due to the rain. So, we need to budget a little bit more for road infrastructure. We have the Thika Super Highway, which the late former President Kibaki did, and now we have the Expressway, which was done by the former President together with the current President. That is a key ingredient to economic growth. We need to upgrade more roads to bitumen standards. As a House, we need to allocate more funds to the road sector.

We are not doing very well on irrigation. We cannot achieve food security without allocating more funds to irrigated agriculture. In the future, as a House, we need to factor in irrigation as a key sector to be supported.

In the creative economy, many of our youth depend on technology to generate a livelihood. The amount of money we have allocated to the creative economy is questionable, and is so little that it cannot make a difference. We need to invest more in the creative economy. The majority of our population is youth. Youth are dominant, and that is a bonus for the country, because this is a productive age that Kenya and many other countries should depend on. So, we need to allocate more funds to the creative economy.

I am surprised and perplexed to notice that Ksh470 million was deducted from the drought response. Here, we refer to drilling bores, desilting dams, and other essential elements in drought response. We need to reinstate this money to support arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs), which experience chronic drought-related issues that need to be mitigated to save lives and save the economies of many people in ASALs.

Lastly, health is an essential sector that we need to budget more for. We have heard a very sad story where Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) patients are queuing for a cancer machine, and we know what that means. So, as a House, let us not ignore or turn a deaf ear towards health. So, we need to factor the health sector into our support for patients, particularly poor patients who depend on this country and nation to survive and contribute to the economy.

With those many remarks, I want to say that, in the future, let us budget more for development than for recurrent expenditure. Let us also have full disclosure of all re-allocations to promote accountability in service delivery and strengthen oversight by National Assembly committees, so that we can…

Mover to reply.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I want to plead with the Leader of the Majority Party that, as I reply, I get your maximum attention.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to reply. First, let me thank Hon. Members for the very vigorous debate that we have had on this budget. This shows that the members of this House are committed to nation-building.

Many issues have been raised on the floor, and I have taken note of most of them. I want to appreciate the issues raised by the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy, Water and Irrigation. I think some of their concerns are accurate. I want to commit that we will investigate some of their concerns, especially those related to allocations for completed projects, and that we will give this House feedback.

I want to challenge Hon. Kangogo Bowen, the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy, Water and Irrigation, to say that when the Executive introduces new projects into the budget, they do not have to consult the Committee Chairmen. The President can introduce projects to the budget through the National Treasury and Economic Planning. That has happened before. It is happening in these supplementary estimates, and I want Members to respect the fact that the Presidency has the power to do so. There are many

new projects in this budget, which I am fully informed are here courtesy of an Executive Order. For those, I urge committees to refrain from challenging the President's authority.

However, if you believe unfair allocations have occurred, I will support you and work closely with you. Many Members have challenged the expenditures under Article 223. I want to reiterate that the Budget and Appropriations Committee reviewed all those expenditures, and we were satisfied with them because they met the requirements of the Constitution. Where allocations are insufficient, additions may be made under Article 223 and in emergencies. The only allocation we challenged and opposed was the one spent by the Siaya County Government. We opposed that one, and we have not approved it.

Thirdly, other Members are questioning the fiscal framework and the fiscal space. Our economy has been expanding. Today, we are talking about an economy worth Ksh19 trillion. So, a fiscal deficit of 6.1 per cent is meagre, and it will not worry anybody. I want to confirm to Kenyans that the fiscal space which we are providing in this supplementary budget is accommodative and affordable. We can manage it as an economy. It is not a lot of money. So, do not worry about fiscal space or the fiscal deficit. We have looked at it, consulted the National Treasury, and, as the Budget and Appropriations Committee, approved it because we know it is sustainable.

Fourth, I know that pending bills are an issue, and we have also discussed this with the National Treasury and Economic Planning. The Executive will develop a framework for addressing pending bills and will communicate with this House. So, I urge Members not to worry so much about the pending bills. Something is being done. As you are aware, pending bills on the road sector have been resolved. There is no contractor today outside the road programme due to pending bills. This was sorted out through the new programme to securitise the fuel levy, which this House approved. There is also a new programme coming up for sorting out the other pending bills.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, we have an intelligent President who knows the issues affecting the country. Therefore, I urge you not to believe some of these issues that come up. Some Members must stand on the Floor of the House to oppose the government's actions because of their backgrounds and political parties. That is the role of the opposition. We will allow you to do that. However, we know that most of the issues being raised have no basis. What is happening is procedural, well communicated, researched and thoughtful.

My brother, Hon. Makali Mulu, spoke widely against the fiscal framework and space. You can oppose what the Government is doing, but everything is working. We are confident that in the end, Kenyans will be happy with what the Government is doing.

With those many remarks, I beg to reply.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

What is out of order? Give Hon. Victor Koech the microphone.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, what is out of order is the failure to mention a critical component that will help the North Eastern part of the country. The Chair of my Committee mentioned a Ksh1.4 billion allocation in this budget to provide electricity to people who have been disadvantaged for generations.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I have sat here for the last four or five hours listening to Members’ contributions. If you want to remain in power, you give people power over generation, transmission and distribution.

Order, Hon. Members. I am the one who is running the House. I want to understand what is out of order. You may continue.

During the distribution of power, as Members of the Departmental Committee on Energy, we seek help from the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation (REREC) . If we fail to allocate them money, how else will we give our people power? Hon. Temporary Speaker, that is why I decided to seek your attention on this matter.

Thank you.

I allowed him to make his contribution because he is speaking the language of my new party leader.

Let us have the Mover. Where is the Chairperson of the Committee on Delegated Legislation? Hon. Victor Koech, proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Looking around and counting the numbers…

Do not go that direction. Do we have the Mover of the Motion under Order No. 14? It will be stepped down. Next Order.

The consideration of this Motion is also stepped down to a later date when it will be next scheduled. Next Order.

Is the leader of the delegation with respect to this Motion in the House? This is also stepped down.

Is the leader of the delegation with respect to this Motion absent? It will be stepped down for consideration in future. Next Order.

Hon. Members, this will also stand stepped down. Call the next Order.

Again, the mover is not in the House. He is engaged elsewhere. This is stepped down to the future. Next Order.

For the convenience of the House, this particular Order is also stepped down for debate in future. Next Order.

This particular Motion is stepped down for consideration in the future. Next Order.

For the convenience of the House, this matter is also stepped down to the future.

Let me indicate that because of the heavy matter the House has attended to, all the matters appearing in the Order Paper will stand stepped down for consideration in future so that the House will stand adjourned henceforth. Be upstanding.

Hon. Members, the time being 9.08 p.m., this House stands adjourned until Thursday, 2nd April 2026, at 2.30 p.m.

Published by Clerk of the National Assembly