A section of Members of County Assemblies (MCAs) have announced the suspension of sittings in the 47 counties, accusing the government of failing to meet their demands.
At the top of the MCAs' list of demands is the reinstatement of plenary sitting allowances, which were scrapped by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) last year.
According to Kinani ward representative Francis Wambua, who is also the chairman of the newly established Members of the County Assembly Congress, the resolution of the MCAs to suspend their sittings follows the lapsing of a 14-day ultimatum issued during their congress held on May 5, 2023, at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi.
“We have sought a resolution of the issues but it is not forthcoming. We, therefore, have no other option but to call upon our members to down their tools across the 47 counties with immediate effect,” Mr Wambua said.
The ward representatives have said that the failure of the national government to make available adequate funds has made them work at the mercy of the county executives, something that hampers their constitutional role of oversight.
“It is very difficult for an MCA to carry out the function of oversight. This is not about the MCAs but devolution. It becomes very difficult to oversight the county executive. Some of the clerks in committees earn more than an MCA. Most MCAs look for ways of working with the executive, hindering their role,” Kileleshwa MCA Robert Alai lamented.
Among the issues that the MCAs want to be addressed is the establishment of the Ward Development Fund which should be anchored in law at 20 percent of the county budget.
Currently, the ward development fund is not anchored in law and is a mutual agreement between the MCAs and the governor.
MCAs usually propose projects after public participation so that they can be implemented by the county executive.
They have also further urged the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) to revoke and refund the 30 percent levy on MCAs' car reimbursements arguing that the fund is a privilege for them.
In July last year, SRC last year abolished car grants and sitting allowances for Members of the bicameral parliament and MCAs but retained committee sitting allowances.
The gross salary of an MCA currently stands at Sh144,375. They are, however, entitled to committee sitting allowances of Sh3,900 per sitting, which is capped at Sh62,400 monthly.
Previously, the MCAs received Sh5,000 as the plenary sitting allowance.
The committee chairpersons earn Sh6,500 per sitting, capped at Sh104,000 per month, while vice chairs earn Sh5,200 per sitting, capped at Sh83,200 per month.
The scrapping of plenary sitting allowances has made a section of the MCAs skip the plenary sittings in favour of the committee meetings.
The Nairobi County Assembly, for instance, has on several occasions suspended its sittings over the lack of quorum.
Although the MCAs belong to the County Assemblies Forum, they have distanced themselves from the forum insisting that it has been unable to advocate for their issues.
They accused the Speakers of lobbying for the increase of their perks while ignoring the MCAs who are part of the forum.
The Members of the County Assembly Congress is a splinter group from the known County Assemblies Forum (CAF).
The rebel MCAs have drifted away arguing that CAF is made up of Speakers and the MCAs who do not speak for them. They claim CAF has failed to articulate its issues since it focuses on county Speakers only.
