No white smoke in Senate revenue formula standoff

The Senate standoff on the county revenue-sharing formula is about to get messy.

After a weekend full of political drama, the 12-member committee formed by Speaker Kenneth Lusaka to develop consensus on the third generation formula failed to reach a consensus.

In fact, it emerged on Sunday that the two sides had only succeeded in hardening their positions, meaning it would now take a vote to separate them. The committee was to brief lawmakers this morning on the outcome of their deliberations in the Speaker’s Kamukunji, an informal sitting of senators.

However, Mr Lusaka was non-committal on the Kamukunji, suggesting the push for a deal had flopped. “I directed the Kamukunji be held tomorrow but I am not sure because I am yet to receive a briefing from the two leaders — Samuel Poghisio and James Orengo,” Mr Lusaka said yesterday.

In his communication to the House last week, the Speaker had guided the committee to hold a consultative session with the House leadership last Thursday, a meeting that never took place.

It was to offer the committee co-chaired by senators Moses Wetang’ula (Bungoma) and Johnson Sakaja (Nairobi) an opportunity to explain to the leadership its progress since August 17.

Deal is promising

“The committee is still conducting its business and has been updating the House leadership on its progress. The possibility of a deal is promising,” Mr Lusaka told the House last week, before calling the Speaker’s Kamukunji.

The report of the Finance Committee is already on the floor, having been amended by Mr Sakaja and Mr Mithika Linturi (Meru). By the time the House adjourned, it was discussing Petronila Were’s amendment which, if adopted, would nullify the proposals by Sakaja and Linturi.

Sources told the Nation that the 12-member committee had two recommendations. The first, which is being pushed by the so-called gaining counties, is for the adoption of the proposals contained in the report of the Finance Committee as the third basis of sharing revenue.

Sh316.5 billion

The group says the formula, if adopted, should be implemented in a two-year phased period. It sets the Sh316.5 billion as a baseline and declares that no county should lose more than 10 per cent of its previous allocation.

Also, devolved units whose revenues are bound to reduce should be cushioned from the third year to avoid financial shocks.

The figure to cushion should be pegged at 10 per cent of the baseline — Sh316.5 billion. On the other hand, the losing counties have vowed to stick to the formula captured in the Linturi amendment.

During the committee meetings, they ceded ground and proposed that the baseline should be increased from Sh270 billion to Sh273 billion.