Embu Ward Representatives on Wednesday expressed their anger after the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) omitted their county from the list of beneficiaries of the equalization funds for the next five years.
According to the MCAs, their fury was sparked following the CRA's report that none of Embu sub-locations qualify for the funds in the second demarginalization policy since the region was considered as well endowed with resources.
The legislators blamed the commission for leaving out the Mbeere region, which according to them, is one of the poorest areas in the county.
[caption caption="File image of Members of the County Assembly"]
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They added that CRA had condemned the region to a lifelong deficiency of public amenities by locking it out on the fund.
Mbeere region representatives led by Muminji MCA Newton Kariuki stated: "It is utterly disappointing to note that despite the fact that some sub-locations in Embu had spent more than 50 years in poverty, CRA has still not seen the need to factor them among the beneficiaries."
Kariuki, who is also the Assembly Deputy Minority Leader, observed that the marginalized areas did not feature in the places marked for county flagship projects.
He, therefore, called for some affirmative action for such areas when formulating Embu's annual budget.
He further divulged that the county has equally denied such regions their rightful share of development.
The lawmakers claim that Embu's marginalization was due to wrong perceptions that the entire county lay on the slopes of Mt.Kenya and therefore not needy.
Embu County had been allocated Ksh 4.1 Billion for 2017/18 Financial Year, out of which Sh440 Million is based on poverty level for Embu.
[caption caption="File image of Mbeere South MP Geoffrey Kingangi "]
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