Members of Parliament have vowed not to approve any allocation to the Road Maintenance Levy (RMLF) as the feud with governors over the control of Sh10 billion rages on.
The lawmakers have told the Council of Governors to withdraw a case they lodged in court over the fund, or else they will not pass any allocation to RMLF while considering the County Governments Additional Allocations Bill, 2025 currently before the House.
The Bill constitutes funds agreed upon by the National Assembly and the Senate during consideration of the Budget Policy Statement.
Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah said they are protecting the Sh10 billion kitty from being looted by the governors.
“As a House we will process the additional county revenue Bill without RMLF and let me tell them, it will not pass on the floor of this House. RMLF is a live wire in this House that you will never touch,” Mr Ichung’wah said.
“We will consult with the leadership of Senators so that no senator will even imagine amending that Bill to introduce RMLF because it will end up in a stalemate that will end up nowhere,” he added.
Mr Ichung’wah said they have already urged Deputy President Kithure Kindiki to intervene over the matter as the chairperson of Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) to tell governors to withdraw the case.
“There is no reason why Sh10 billion would be lying idle at a time we are about to get into the period of short rains and Kenyans will be crying about bad roads and cannot access markets because governors want to control the money,” Mr Ichung’wah said.
Minority Leader Junet Mohamed said the House will sit on the Bill as long as the Council of Governors are still in court over the fund.
“On this one we will put our foot down, we will not pass that Bill with the RMLF money. If they don’t want to, the Bill will get stuck here and won’t go anywhere,” Mr Mohamed said.
“I want to tell the Council of Governors, don’t joke with MPs, they have been elected just the same way as you,” he added.
Minority Whip Millie Odhiambo said they are ready to take governors head on over the fund saying the county chiefs are also undertaking duties such as giving out bursaries which is not within their constitutional mandate.
“We know the Council of Governors under the fourth schedule has no constitutional mandate to give bursary but because we know it’s helping, we have closed our ears, but we can also attack. If they want to take over roads that help our people, then let us go to the constitution. If they want to bring the war, then let them bring it on, we are ready,” Ms Odhiambo said.
Ainabkoi MP Samuel Chepkonga said that the only way governors will get their share as contained in the additional allocation Bill is through the withdrawal of the Bill.
“We want to tell the CoG to withdraw that case so that they can be able to get their money which is more than Sh10 billion. We are all from constituencies, yet I have never seen any Council of Governors maintaining or repairing roads in my constituency,” Mr Chepkonga said.
Council of Governors chairman Ahmed Abdullahi on Thursday last week criticized MPs over their threats explaining that RMLF was specially established to maintain roads constructed and maintained by the two levels of government.
“The move amounts to a selfish attempt by the members of the National Assembly who seek to control the national government agencies that construct roads that have been constitutionally assigned to the county governments,” Mr Abdullahi said.
“We call upon all the stakeholders, including the Senate, civil society groups, county governments, and members of the public to hold the National Assembly to account in order for them to stop their malicious attempt that seeks to prevent counties as beneficiaries of RMLF,” he added.
The law stipulates that the Kenya Roads Board (KRB), which collects up to Sh100billion annually from fuel levy, is required to allocate at least 22 percent of RFML and road toll collections for use in the development and upkeep of roads in all the constituencies.
It is also required to allocate 10 per cent to the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) for maintenance of link roads within constituencies.
