Funds disputes a threat to devolution, Oparanya says
From left: Teso North MP Oku Kaunya, Governors Stephen Sang (Nandi), Paul Chepkwony (Kericho), Wycliffe Oparanya (Kakamega), Wilber Ottichilo, and Mosop MP Vincent Tuwei during the signing of the peace accord at Tabolwa Secondary School in Nandi County on September 21.
What you need to know:
- Mr Oparanya advised senators to put aside their differences when dealing with matters touching on the lives of ordinary Kenyans.
- Mr Oparanya accused politicians of avoiding to engage the public in a wider debate on equity, preferring to leave the issue to the Commission for Revenue Authority.
Funding disputes between the government and devolved units, lack of consultations and little technical support are some of the challenges facing devolution, Council of Governors Chairman Wycliffe Oparanya has said.
He added that the problem has been compound by insufficient allocations and delayed disbursements of funds to counties, lack of capacity and skills, lack public participation and gender inequality.
“There should be a better working relationship between the two levels of government. Parliament, devolved governments, the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee, ministries, independent offices and commissions and the civil society need to work together,” Mr Oparanya said during the seventh Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya annual summit at Sarova Whitesands on Wednesday.
He said lack of resources has been a hurdle for important services like health, with counties ill-equipped to manage complex tasks such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
Commercial loans
“Some counties have taken commercial loans. Meanwhile, thousands of employees are going without salaries while suppliers are looking for loans to remain afloat,” he said during the zoom meeting.
He added that Kenyans adopted devolution, hoping resources would no longer be centralised.
“For how long will we keep frustrating the devolution agenda? Devolution cannot succeed without resources,” Mr Oparanya said.
Mr Oparanya advised senators to put aside their differences when dealing with matters touching on the lives of ordinary Kenyans.
The Kakamega governor said Kenya needs to chart a course towards equitable sharing of resources.
“While political authority is being devolved, revenue mobilisation remains highly centralised; a marked contrast to the situation in large federal countries like India and Brazil,” he said.
Economic growth
“The 2010 Constitution is unequivocal in demanding that public spending plays a great role in mitigating disadvantage.”
Mr Oparanya accused politicians of avoiding to engage the public in a wider debate on equity, preferring to leave the issue to the Commission for Revenue Authority.
“The wider challenge for Kenya’s elite is to recognise that the real threat to the future is not from an imagined trade-off between economic growth and equity, but from a continued indifference to the inequalities that are destroying so much potential, hampering productivity and fuelling social division,” he said.
Mr Oparanya added that Kenya can overcome bad decisions by ensuring devolution is financed.
He, however, said the main success of devolution has been its implementation, “which was not guaranteed”.
