Narok Senator Ledama Olekina suggested that the Kenyan Parliament consistently ignores the views expressed by the public during public participation sessions.
Speaking during a panel discussion on Citizen TV Thursday morning, the legislator noted that proposals raised during public participation are often disregarded and not given further consideration. He reiterated his belief that even the feedback provided during a recent public participation session on the contentious Finance Bill held on Monday will likely not be taken into account.
“I can tell you this that as a politician, as a parliamentarian, whenever we go to public participation we collect the views of the public but we don’t consider them. That’s a fact,” he said.
“All the views of Kenyans in regards to the painful reality, none of them will be considered.”
Senator Olekina stated that there is a dire need to provide room for demystifying the 2024/2025 budget with Kenyan citizens to foster camaraderie between the state and its electorate.
“The most important thing we need to focus on is to try to listen to Kenyans because we are not listening to them,” he said.
He further asserted that the government’s decision to increase taxation rates in the proposed budget is influenced by external forces aiming to control the nation’s finances.
“The challenge is that we are not controlling ourselves. The IMF and the World Bank are the ones who are dictating which policies we should be able to put,” stated Ledama. He continued, expressing concerns about the budget process, suggesting that it might lead to a series of supplementary budgets as the government tries to align its spending with its objectives.
The proposed budget has escalated to a projected Ksh.4 trillion, up from Ksh.3.7 trillion in the 2023/24 fiscal year. Treasury Cabinet Secretary (CS) Njuguna Ngung’u is scheduled to present the budget in Parliament today, Thursday, for its reading ahead of a parliamentary debate.
