Ladies and gentlemen;
I am happy to be back home ahead of the
El Nino.
I called to speak to you on the sorry state of affairs in our country, particularly our
economy.
Since Jubilee came to power, it has
insisted that the economy is growing and
Kenyans can sit back and relax. We in
Opposition have warned that we are on the road to nowhere.We warned that
jubilee is over borrowing, over spending
and over stealing.
We have warned that the cost of living is
rising and Jubilee economics is testing
our patience. We raised alarm that the Jubilee
Government had increased our public debt
by Ksh.860 billion in one year, from
Ksh.1.8 trillion to Ksh.2.6 trillion. This was
an increase of 50 percent, the largest
annual increase in our history. The Grand Coalition government increased the debt
by Ksh.900 billion in the five years it was
in office, an average of Ksh.190 billion.
We warned that Jubilee was borrowing at
almost five times the rate at which the
Grand Coalition government borrowed. When we raised questions, we were
called names and told off in words that
cannot be taken back. Political posturing,
bickering and insults replaced honest
debate. A lot of time and a lot of trust
were lost.An ugly reality now mocks us. The National Treasury has acknowledged
that it is facing a cash crunch due to a
combination of domestic and
international loan repayments falling due,
slow collection of government revenue
and demands for disbursements. But the wastage and inefficiency persists in
government.
The recovery and the job creation
witnessed between 2003 and 2012 are
disappearing.
I have always believed that people are ready to handle the truth. So I wish to be
honest with Kenyans, if the government
won’t be.
The truth is that our economy is
underperforming. All of the 10 African
countries whose economies are among the 20 fastest in the world are growing at
7 per cent plus. They include:Liberia
…………..10.4 per centNiger…………..8.0 per
centCote D’Ivoire…..7.9 per
centEthiopia………….7.5 per centGhana……
……7.3 per centMozambique….7.2 per centTanzania………..7.2 per centRwanda…..
…..7.1 per centDRC…………..7.1 per
centZambia………..7.1 per centUganda…..
….6.2 per centKenya………..5.2 per cent.At
5.2 per cent, Kenya’s economy is number
four within the East Africa Community. We are only better than Burundi. The idea
that Kenya is the region’s biggest
economy may soon be a myth. Tanzania
will catch up with us in four years and
become 20 per cent bigger economy by
2030.Last week, Imperial Bank was put under receivership. We last had collapsing
banks in the 1990s when YK92 wreaked
havoc on our nation.Things are bad at the
Nairobi Securities Exchange. The media
reported last week that investors at the
NSE have lost another Sh60 billion in the last one month. This extended the losses
to Sh530 billion since prices of shares
started falling seven months ago.The
market value of all outstanding shares at
the NSE has shrunk by 20 per cent from
Sh2.43 trillion in March to Sh1.90 trillion by the end of last week. The collapse of
Imperial Bank and the losses at NSE
indicate a possibility of capital flight.Our
budget deficit stands at 10 per cent of the
GDP and 18 per cent of revenue. Our
public debt has doubled. Foreign debt has overtaken domestic debt. The external
debts are mostly commercial and non-
concessional. The cost of servicing our
foreign debt is rising faster than
domestic one largely as a result of huge
commercial loans especially the Eurobond. But there is nothing to show for the big
loans. We used to spend 4 per cent of our
export revenue on servicing foreign debts.
Now we spend 10 per cent.
Last year, we were told that the Sh289
billion ($2.75 billion) Eurobond loan would stop government borrowing from
domestic markets, thereby helping drive
down interest rates.
Today, interest rates are at their highest
in more than a decade, inflation has gone
haywire, the government is broke and nobody is talking about Eurobond.
Debt servicing is taking one third of our
revenue and it is rising. Our exports have
stagnated. But imports are growing. The
government is living beyond its means.
One would have thought that when we are at the brink, we would see the bigger
picture, be humbled by the reality and live
up to our responsibilities.One would have
thought that this reality would be reason
to bridge the gap between far-flung
positions and to bring about solutions in the interest of Kenya. Jubilee however
sees this as just another moment for
hubris, grandstanding, back passing and
big talk.Jubilee refuses to agree that
mega corruption in the end leaves even
the big thieves with nothing to steal and nothing to pay workers like
teachers.Sooner rather than later, the
figures were going to refuse to add up.
Let us be honest, teachers have not been
paid, not because they went on strike but
because the government is broke. The strike is the excuse. Counties are getting
their money too late, if at all.We are only
at the beginning of a long, bruising and
miserable journey.
It is upon the president to ensure that
confidence returns both among the Kenyan people and to the Kenyan
economy. Yet the President glossed over
these issues yesterday.Mr President, we
need a clear road map to put Kenya on
the path to sustainable and equitable
growth. As Opposition, we stand ready to support measures that will steady the
economy and ensure respect for our
nation. We are ready to support a growth
strategy that takes Kenya where it
belongs. We know the league this nation
should be playing in. We demand a plan that creates a
convergence; with productivity, job
creation, fairness and inclusivity at the
centre of our growth agenda.Mr
President, provide Kenyans with a
credible course for a stronger and better future.
Present to Kenyans a credible system to
ensure their bank savings remain safe.
Mr President, multiplication of
institutions and putting the country on
auto pilot will not deliver more or better results. The tribalism consuming our
nation is sanctioned by your government
through skewed public service
appointments. We long pointed it out.
You do not need a national values audit
and a council of elders to end it as you said yesterday.Mr President, show
Kenyans that you care. Think of the
families thrown into uncertainty because
their bread winners, serving our country
as teachers, cannot be paid. Think of the
thousands of suppliers of goods and services to your government whose
businesses are collapsing because they
have not been paid.
Mr President, we demand stability for the
Kenya shilling.
Mr President, no wind will guide a sailor that has no destined port.
Tell Kenyans where you are taking them,
how you intend to get there and by
when.You asked for, and acquired the
mandate to steady, not to wreck the
nation. Do not underestimate the urgency of the
situation Kenya faces.Do not
underestimate your imperative to
act.Please get up and report on duty.
HON RAILA ODINGA; EGH
OCTOBER 21, 2015.