IM TALKING OF FLOWER BOYS, I KNOW WHAT I MEAN.Senate ERUPTS as Kathuri collides with BRILLIANT Asige

[00:00:00]people who would want to petition Parliament, because previously I know that uh our attention has been brought to the presence of petitioners outside our gate through vuvuzelas, which can be very disruptive, and the speaker has sent us to receive those petitions. So, Madam Speaker, I fear that uh that direction that you've given might have gone a bit too far. Processions, by their nature, they are disruptive to flow of traffic, they are disruptive to ordinary life, but that is what the Constitution expects.

[00:00:29]>> Uh honorable senators, uh I think the Senator of Nairobi is right that the provision in the Constitution talks about peaceful procession and unarmed. So, to the extent that they are peaceful and unarmed, I think uh those processions uh should be acceptable. Uh that is agreed.

[00:00:52]Uh can we move on now to Senator uh uh Kathuri?

[00:00:58]Is I know, sorry, order number 16.

[00:01:04]>> Order number 16, the County Government Laws Amendment Bill, Senate Bills number 52 of 2024, second reading.

[00:01:20]>> Thank you, Madam Speaker, for the opportunity to move this bill, and I beg to move that the County Governments Laws Amendment Bill, Senate Bills number 52 of 2024, be read a second time.

[00:01:37]Uh honorable Speaker, this bill actually touches on the work and the responsibilities of the deputy governors, who you very well know that uh Madam Speaker, they live under a lot of a lot of pressure from the governors.

[00:01:58]So, this bill is actually trying to see how Madam Speaker, can you kindly allow my thoughts to flow properly by protecting me from Senator Madu can move even to the back side.

[00:02:21]>> Give me Uh honorable senators, honorable senators, majority leader, please.

[00:02:26]Kindly Senator for Kakamega and majority leader.

[00:02:31]Can we Let us accord some respect to the senator who's reading the bill.

[00:02:36]Let us listen, please.

[00:02:41]>> So, Madam Speaker, I was saying I meant that the this the County Government Laws Amendment Bill this amendment to the Act of Parliament is to amend the and allow the County Government Act provisions for specific functions for the office of the deputy governor.

[00:02:59]And also to amend the Intergovernmental Relations Act and for connected purposes. I said Madam Speaker, that the deputy governors, all the senators here are aware that currently with the statistics that I have because we engaged in the deputy governors during the stakeholders forum 40 now 42 deputy governors are not seeing eye to eye with their governors. And Madam Speaker, you know these people, these two leaders are always elected together.

[00:03:35]They sit down and agree on how they will be able to muster the votes so that they can get to the office. But once they get to the office, Madam Speaker, you know what happens?

[00:03:49]What happens when they get to the office.

[00:03:52]Immediately then governors chase away chase away the deputy governors.

[00:03:59]Remember even I think almost two deputy governors have been brought here on impeachments.

[00:04:05]Yeah. So, Madam Speaker, this is a very important bill touching on devolution.

[00:04:09]>> Uh Senator Senator Kathuri, did you actually move that the bill be read a second time?

[00:04:14]>> Yes, I did.

[00:04:15]>> You did. Okay, that's fine. Proceed.

[00:04:18]>> You know I'm a seasoned senator Senator Kathuri.

[00:04:23]The Madam Speaker, I did that, but you know there was a lot of noise from my back end.

[00:04:28]So, so so I said that I I the bill to be read a second time. And the Hansard will bear me witness.

[00:04:37]So, Madam Speaker, what I said is that what we this bill is proposing to do and all senators in this room in this house, they know the problems that we have with the the deputy governors and the governors.

[00:04:52]Madam Speaker, number one, what I'm proposing to do is to accord the deputy governors the the functions including the general administration of the county government and overseeing the implementation of county executive committee decisions.

[00:05:09]Madam Speaker, I'm also proposing that they undertake the functions of a specified appointment appointed position in the county's executive committee as may be assigned by the governor.

[00:05:21]And also represent the governors and the county government in various official capacities in the national and the county levels of government. You know, Madam Speaker, at the moment there's no deputy governor who can represent the the the governor in the Council of Governors. They have completely refused.

[00:05:40]And therefore the the deputy governors are left like I don't want to say flaggers because it is a very sensitive issue and I can see my colleague is here who is a defender of the girls.

[00:05:52]I don't want to use the word flower girls, but also nowadays they are flower boys, Madam Speaker, but I want to see deputy governors have been reduced have been reduced >> Senator Katuri, we don't have flower boys, we have page boys.

[00:06:08]>> No, I meant flower boys in another connotation.

[00:06:13]No, I don't I'm not I'm not referring to the weddings, Madam Speaker.

[00:06:19]They are They are men. They are men and boys who have become flower boys.

[00:06:24]No, no, no, no.

[00:06:25]I know what I mean.

[00:06:27]I know what I mean.

[00:06:28]>> Proceed, Senator.

[00:06:30]>> So, I don't want to be very specific on a a particular >> Senator Sigei, what is your point of order?

[00:06:47]Okay, thank you very much, Speaker, for the opportunity. This is actually a point of clarification, Chair.

[00:06:53]Senator, of course, for Meru, as he's a very seasoned legislator, as he has told us, will understand that this house is visible to the public and in fact we're not here to talk to each other or to ourselves, but we're here to educate the general public across the country. So, when he says that he knows what he means when he is saying flower boys and flower girls, I don't understand how that would then educate the public on the bill that he is trying to move because he needs to make sure that all of us understand and move with him in one accord. So, may he explain and clarify what he means by flower girls and flower boys in county government so that all of us, including the public, can be well informed. Thank you.

[00:07:34]>> Thank you, Senator Katuri. Please explain who the flower boys and flower girls >> of time, you know, I I didn't want to manage the time Since they do not understand what I meant, Madam Speaker, I will withdraw >> Senator, the chair, are you withdrawing Thank you.

[00:07:50]>> so that we can make progress and I want members to speak on this important bill before before we go too far. So, Madam Speaker, I was saying I think that we want also deputy governors to facilitate and maintain effective intergovernmental relations. And I was explaining that there is no governor who would allow a deputy governor to represent him or her in the national forums that we receive with the deputy president, with the president, even if they are incapacitated. They have a green never to allow deputy governors to do anything outside the county. So, this bill, Madam Speaker, And I want to quote one gentleman called Professor Ben Nna Mbuze, who said concentration of government powers in the hands of one individual is the very definition of dictatorship. And absolute power is by its very nature capricious and despotic.

[00:08:47]So, Madam Speaker, the concentration of power with the within the the office of the governor because I was trying to to to to do an analysis. What happens when we elect the president?

[00:09:01]When the president is elected, he is very magnanimous to give a lot of work to the deputy president. And the reason why even these deputy governors are suffering is because most of the county governors are not assigning them budgets to run their offices. So, that is why sometimes, even these guys, sometimes, even they they they they they buy tea from themselves to run the office.

[00:09:26]They do so many things, even the cars, sometimes they fuel themselves, my Madam Speaker, because they have no budget for their offices. In the national treasury national treasury, the national the committee on budget and appropriations committee allocates money to both the office of the president and the office of the deputy president. Therefore, this bill will compel even the county assemblies to allow governors to to to to to allocate money to run the deputy governor's offices. Madam Speaker, I remember sometimes when we had issues in Meru, the deputy governor water was disconnected, electricity power was disconnected, he had no vehicle.

[00:10:13]He didn't survive miraculously. And therefore, all these deputy governors have come together and they are seeking and requesting this house to to pass this bill so that they can be able to function properly. Some of these deputy governors are professionals, but they they are work they don't have anything to do. They are professionals, they can contribute a lot in the in the respective county governments, but Madam Speaker, they are not allowed to do anything. So, Madam Speaker, this bill has come the right time. Actually, we were to handle this bill when we were in Busia, but unfortunately, that was the best forum to discuss about it, but now you can see, Madam Speaker, this is the right time.

[00:10:54]And so far, the the fourth Senate, this one we are in, has considered the removal from office of Honorable William Dr. William Odwole, the deputy governor of Siaya County, and Honorable Dr. Robert Monda, the deputy governor of Kisii County. And in both impeachments, uh reviewing the gap in the law due to a lack of clear functions and roles of deputy governors. In many counties, this has contributed to rising tensions between governors and their deputies, which has actually started and destabilized the delivery of services in the county governments. So, honorable speaker uh as I said, we met the we met all the deputy governors and their representatives.

[00:11:44]And I want to thank also the the the the committee that handled this matter, led by Senator Baz.

[00:11:50]But, Madam Speaker, they did a very good work and we processed this bill without any any hitches. And Madam Speaker, uh Article 179 of the Constitution of Kenya provides for the establishment of the county executive committees, which comprises the governor, the deputy governor, and the members appointed by the governor with the approval of the county assembly.

[00:12:16]In most county governments, actually the the deputy governors even do not know when the cabinet sits.

[00:12:22]It's unfortunate.

[00:12:24]They don't get messages when the cabinet is sitting.

[00:12:27]It is that that bad, Madam Speaker. And therefore, once this bill is is is is enacted by the Senate and assented to by the president, it will do a lot of good to our to our devolution. And Madam Speaker, since the Senate is to protect is meant to protect devolution, to protect the counties and the county governments, this bill sits properly within its within within the mandate of the Senate. And Madam Speaker, if there is any other bill that it didn't touches on our work as a Senate, is such a bill. So, we didn't need the 40 Senate to make sure that we enact a law that will help our county governments function properly. I want to thank this house because from this year, Madam Speaker, this house also uh passed a law that is as now allowed the county assemblies to access their money directly from Treasury, to be autonomous. And I want to thank them. They supported that bill which I brought to this house, and now the county government the county assemblies the 47 county assemblies are now autonomous. They are able now to plan for their activities and programs the way the Senate and the National Assembly does not does their mean the running of the National Assembly and the Senate does not depend on the executive. So many years ago when I was not a member maybe uh 20 years or so ago or 30 the National Assembly the Parliament used to queue at the office of the president so that they can get their money from the executive. So this is what actually we have been able to accord our county assemblies. And now they are happy. And also these other ones for the deputy governors let us support these gentlemen. We know they are suffering from where we come from and therefore members speaker this is a very straight forward bill which I don't want to take a lot of time because I can see my colleagues are really queuing.

[00:14:33]And uh I want to move and ask if Senator Cherargei to second this this bill. Thank you.

[00:14:42]>> Uh Senator Cherargei before you second uh