Prime Minister Raila Odinga
Mr. Speaker Sir,I rise today to make a brief statement on an area that I strongly feel our country needs to start giving some serious thoughts as we prepare to implement priority areas of our Constitution.
One of the highlights of our New Constitution is the provision for the devolved system of government. The creation of the devolved government is one of the far-reaching reforms in our governance structure which, if efficiently and fully implemented, has the potential to enhance Kenya’s stability and development.
Devolution means the decentralization and democratization of power, services and resources. It entails greater accountability and transparency in the exercise of power. Chapter 10 of the New Constitution outlines our national aspirations with respect to Devolution. They include fostering diversity, enhanced people participation in governance, equity and greater recognition of the role of women in public affairs.
Mr. Speaker,The reforms envisaged under Devolution will have to be implemented in a manner that is consistent and coordinated across the National Government. The transition need to be properly planned to avoid any disruption to the provision of essential government services.
There are issues we need to start exercising our minds about if we are to make Devolution a success.
Mr. Speaker, One of the requirements of the Devolved government is that one third of the seats in the County Assembly and one third of the positions in the County Government will have to be occupied by women. That is now the law. As I travel across the country Mr. Speaker, I get the feeling that this message has not sunk down enough and very little sensitization is going on.
Women have for long been relegated to the role of observers in a political game dominated by men. Kenya’s politics has over time become very masculine and quite physical. It has also become a very expensive affair and because of these two features, our women have largely been locked out of politics.
Women supported this Constitution so whole heartedly because it marked the beginning of their long sought liberation. It guarantees that one-third of all elected or appointed posts in government go to women. It binds Political parties to pay special attention to gender parity, an obvious departure from what has been the norm.
Mr. Speaker;I want to make an appeal for due attention to be paid to the provisions on women. I want to appeal to national and international organizations, and institutions like the Maendeleo Ya Wanawake to begin the process of preparing and empowering women for the political positions where they are guaranteed certain numbers by law. I feel the time has come for our institutions and our international supporters to embark on a deliberate campaign of preparing the women for roles they have to take up particularly in politics in the coming elections. It is my belief that women’s entry into politics in the desired numbers will see them make a mark in other areas of our economy and public life.
Mr. Speaker;We all agree on the need to cultivate the culture of financial restraint in our counties. We need to ensure that County Governments will have the capacity to manage their financial affairs. We must avoid the risk of resources being provided to Counties without having the capacity and accountability mechanism to spend them responsibly and efficiently. We need a well designed and implemented public finance management system for devolved governments, which preserves a substantial degree of autonomy in making fiscal decisions. If controls are inadequate or information quality is poor, County Government performance and accountability will be undermined.
Mr. Speaker;It is not an exaggeration to say time is not on our side, particularly in regard to implementing the provisions of the County government.
In recent years, we have seen squabbles stall even mundane initiatives like deciding the location of a district headquarter. As leaders from various designated counties, we need to start brainstorming on these issues. Do we need to build new headquarters for the counties or do we turn existing facilities like the offices of the Provincial and District Commissioners into offices of the county governments?
Mr. Speaker;We need to avoid the risk that resources will be provided to local governments without the capacity and accountability to spend them responsibly and efficiently. We need to ensure that County Governments will have the capacity to manage their financial affairs. We need a well designed and implemented public finance management system for devolved governments, which preserves a substantial degree of autonomy in making fiscal decisions. If controls are inadequate or information quality is poor, County Government performance and accountability will be undermined.
Work therefore needs to start on capacity building for future human resource managers, auditors, budget controllers and revenue officers, ahead of the arrival of the County governments.
Finally, I would like to inform the House and the Country at large that the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government has constituted a Task Force on Devolved Government. The Task Force is to recommend policy and legislative proposals for the implementation of devolved government. The Task Force will commence County Hearings from February 21, 2011. A full Time Table for County Hearings will appear in the media by February 18, 2011. The Task Force is expected to complete its work by June 30, 2011. I appeal to Members and to the public to actively engage the Task Force either at the County Hearings or by way of memorandum. The offices of the Task Force are at Bima House, 12th Floor, Harambee Avenue, Nairobi.
Rt. Hon. Raila A. Odinga, EGH, MP
PRIME MINISTER
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