Let mediation team fix counties’ cash woes
The 47 counties are the chosen constitutional vehicles for countrywide development, whose footprint is evident in the impressive projects and programmes. But this good work is being hampered by logistical and financial challenges.
Ironically, it is not about lack of funds. The advent of the counties over 10 years ago has seen the highest transfer of funds from the centre to the grassroots in the six decades since Independence.
However, a needless supremacy battle between the National Assembly and the Senate is partly the source of the financial difficulties being experienced in the counties. A good four months into the current financial year, the National Assembly and the Senate are, quite unbelievably, yet to agree on the amount of funds that should be disbursed to the counties.
As the funds continue to be withheld, the counties’ stock of pending bills is piling up and in some of them, the staff have not been paid salaries for several months. At this rate, these devolved units, which have shown great potential in driving national development and prosperity, could easily grind to a halt. This will be quite unfortunate and a big shame.
However, there may just be some light at the end of the tunnel following the formation by the lawmakers of an 18-member mediation team to help the two Houses of Parliament end the funding impasse. The National Assembly and the Senate need to quickly agree on the amount of money counties should receive as their equitable revenue share in the current financial year.
The Senators wanted the counties to given Sh400 billion as shareable revenue, while the MPs, citing national financial difficulties, are insisting on Sh380 billion. The committee to be composed of an equal number of MPs and Senator is expected to reach a middle ground within 30 days.
The setting up of the mediation team is a step in the right direction. But most importantly, there is a need for a speedy enactment of a law to clearly guide the division of revenue and hasten the disbursement of funds so that the counties' operations are not paralysed.
