President Kenyatta assents to Revenue Bill

President Kenyatta has assented to the controversial Division of Revenue Bill, Majority Leader Aden Duale has told MPs June 11, 2013. FILE 

By JOHN NGIRACHU and ALPHONCE SHIUNDU
Posted  Tuesday, June 11  2013 at  15:49

IN SUMMARY

• Senate had allocated the counties Sh258 billion, Sh48 billion more than the Sh210 billion, that the National Assembly thought the counties should share.

President Kenyatta has assented to the controversial Division of Revenue Bill, Majority Leader Aden Duale has told MPs.

Addressing the National Assembly on Tuesday, Mr Duale said the President signed into law the Bill on Monday.

On receiving the news, the Senate adjourned and went into a closed session to discuss President Kenyatta's move.

Siaya Senator James Orengo broke the news to a shocked Senate and proposed the adjournment.

Mr Orengo said the implication was that the Senate was of no consequence. The Senate had wanted Sh258 billion allocated to the counties. Senators and governors said that without the extra Sh48 billion, some counties will suffer in delivery of service. 

“It is with deep sorrow that I received the news that the President has assented to the Bill,” said Kipchumba Murkomen, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Devolved Government.

Mr Murkomen told the Senate that there was a conspiracy to cripple the Senate and have it wound up.

“We have no business being senators if we have no business to do with allocation of resources to our counties… It is a deliberate scheme and a conspiracy of other institutions to ensure that the Senate is discarded,” said Mr Murkomen.

President Kenyatta was under intense pressure to reject the controversial Bill, with less than 20 days left to the beginning of the next financial year.

The Bill determines financial allocations between the national government and the 47 county governments, and is the first step to help the counties know how much money they will get from July 1 when the next fiscal year begins.

The National Assembly and the Treasury had agreed on Sh210 billion, but the Senate added an extra Sh48 billion to ensure delivery of services in counties is not affected once the national government stops providing them.

However, in the final Bill, MPs ignored the senators’ input and retained the initial Sh210 billion, leading to the conflict.

Last week, Senate Speaker Ekwee Ethuro wrote to President Kenyatta and asked him to reject the Bill.

Mr Ethuro also wrote to Attorney General Githu Muigai, with a plea to explain to the president why the Bill, as approved by the National Assembly was illegal.

“What Bill did they submit to the president when they did not even touch the Bill that was sent to the National Assembly from the Senate? A Bill has to follow a laid-down procedure before it is said to have been enacted,” said Mr Ethuro.