National Assembly · Afternoon Sitting
Tuesday, 8 August 2023
Hon. Wanami Wamboka highlighted systemic failures in state corporations, including unsecured land, decades‑long unfinished construction projects, and over‑reliance on costly consultants, urging stronger oversight and funding discipline. He also called for improved ethnic and gender balance in public‑sector staffing and a shift of public funds away from private universities toward public institutions. The remarks combined sharp criticism with concrete reform proposals. Members welcomed youth leaders and praised the contributions of a first‑time MP, but the debate quickly turned to criticism of the proliferation of public agencies, long‑delayed infrastructure projects and the misuse of consultancy contracts. Hon. Atandi also highlighted ethnic and intellectual imbalances in the civil service, urging stronger parliamentary oversight and greater inclusivity. Members highlighted serious shortcomings in public financial management, including delayed audit submissions, overpriced private consultancies and ethnic bias in public employment, and called for stricter linking of audit outcomes to budget allocations. They also condemned the misuse of public funds for private universities and urged investigations into collusion within the Ministry of Education. The speakers expressed support for the committee's report while urging concrete reforms and accountability.
Sergeants-At-Arms, ring the Quorum Bell. Hon. Robert Mbui, where are your troops? You seem immersed in your phone, yet the House lacks a quorum. Order, Hon. Members. Clerks-at-the-Table, we have quorum to transact business.
[(The Quorum Bell was rung)]
Deputy Leader of the Majority Party.
Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table of the House:
Thank you, Hon. Baya
We have a Statement from Hon. Beatrice Elachi.
Hon. Speaker, I want to appreciate Dr Kihara Anne-Beatrice, President-elect of the International Federation of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (IFOG) . She will serve her term from 2023 to 2025. This is one chance Kenya has received, and this honourable lady will be the President of all gynaecologists worldwide. She has received her nomination as President-elect, and she will be in Paris to be ho…
Hon. Elachi has been honoured because she is qualified, not because she is a woman. Is that not so?
Yes, Hon. Speaker. She has been honoured for her qualification and not for being a woman. This House celebrates her.
We join you in acknowledging and celebrating the achievement of Dr Kihara. Thank you very much.
Chairperson of the Special Funds Account Committee. Who is the Chairperson? Hon. Owen, those are Oversight Committees. Hon. Fatuma Mohammed, Migori, Women Representative. Where is she? Who is the Vice-Chairperson? Where is Hon. Fatuma Mohammed? She calls herself "full network". Hon. Robert Mbui. Hon. Owen Baya, you are standing in for Hon. Ichung'wah. Independence in this House will still be acc…
Hon. Speaker, the Hon. Lady known as "full network," or Hon. Mohammed Fatuma Zainab, is much more aligned with Hon. Robert Mbuis's area of jurisdiction. We should agree to step down the Motion for now and try to find out whether she can make a presentation after the next Motion.
Hon. Members, we circulate the Order Paper, at least, 24 hours before we sit. Every Member has a duty, not discretion, to be in this House when it is sitting This is more so, a Member who is a leader and has to lead a business in the House. We take a very dim view of the absence of the Hon. Member. She is directed to come and give a cogent explanation to the House as to why she is not here at the …
[(An Hon. Member spoke off the record)]
[(Laughter)]
You argue, gesticulating with your once, impeccably clean and beautiful hands, That before long it shall not matter, For 'everybody' is delving and digging, And all shall have hands dripping with dirt. That nobody shall Know what clean hands look like, And there shall be comfort in the dirty crowd, Are you going blind brother? I ask how many have the sludge Or the strong and bold hands like yours …
they were using to target the Prime Minister then. They were saying that the Prime Minister does not favour the Suba. I have heard them say that again. I want to repeat what I told them then that when Hon. Raila was the Prime Minister, the person who was in charge of hiring people in his office and the Chief of Staff was Hon. Caroli Omondi, now a Member. The Assistant Minister in his office was no…
On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.
What is out of order, Hon. Baya?
The Member is on fire and we need to cool her down. She is saying that the former Prime Minister practised nepotism or tribalism by hiring all the people she has mentioned, from the same region. She will later say that other people have hired people from the same community. However, she is indicting that the former Prime Minister only employed people from Nyanza in his office.
Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. He has tried, but I will give him two out of 10. He did not perform very well in his attempt. The former Prime Minister, in fact, he is not former because there has been none after him, is a Luo and he is related to the Luhya. He is not a Suba. Therefore, he was not being biased. Hon. Isaac Mwaura was also nominated. I was just giving the example of Suba. I can …
Hon. Millie Odhiambo, do you want to be informed?
I do not want to be informed.
Hon. Millie has rejected the information. Proceed.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, I am a lawyer with a Master’s Degree from the New York University. There is nothing you can inform me on. I am fairly intelligent and knowledgeable on governance and corruption issues. I am also a ranking Member. So, I have a history of this Parliament. I can teach and educate you about things that have gone on and things that are continuing to go on. In conclusion, we can…
[(Laughter)]
Hon. Fatuma Masito and Dr Eve Obara, contribute for two minutes each.
Ninakushukuru, Mhe. Spika wa Muda, kwa kunipatia nafasi hii. Pia, ninaipatia kongole Kamati hii ambayo imeleta Ripoti hii katika Bunge la Kitaifa. Kuna mambo ya utofauti wa makabila ambayo inaitwa ethnicity and diversity kwa lugha ya kimombo. Mimi nimetoka katika Kaunti ya Kwale ambapo kuna vijana wengi ambao wamesoma vizuri sana. Lakini, kupata nafasi katika wizara za kitaifa ni kazi ngumu sana.…
Asante, Hon. Fatuma Masito. Hon. (Dr) Eve Obara.
Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for giving me time to also speak on this Report, which I support. The thread running through it is very clear. It is a demonstration of incompetence, ignorance, and lack of total understanding of even the most basic requirements of running an organisation. Simple! We have organs supposed to oversee these organisations and they came out clearly telling …
people sent us here to oversee the Executive. We are not apologists for the Government. There is something that came up skewed…
Hon. Wamboka, where have you come from? Do the right thing as you come in. Just do the right thing.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, please, consult silently. Skewed ethnic diversity…
I was not consulting, but keeping order in the House.
Hon. Temporary Speaker, an issue was raised on skewed ethnic diversity. There is an organisation called the NCIC, which was set up in 2010 after the promulgation of the new Constitution. Must we repeat ourselves all the time about ethnicity? This Commission has generated reports. So, why are we not making use of them to have balance and fairness? This is not about anybody’s shareholding in a compa…
Hon. Eve Obara, tomorrow, you will have four minutes when this particular Motion will be enlisted on the Order Paper. Order, Hon. Members. Hon. Wamboka, Members have great interest in your Motion. We request the House Business Committee (HBC) to schedule it for conclusion tomorrow and hopefully, you will be available. It is not permitted within the Standing Orders to curtail debate when Members a…
Hon. Members, the time being 7.00