Elgeyo Marakwet governor, Alex Tolgos, on Wednesday revealed that he often borrows a car from members of his County Executive Committee (CEC), to enable him to carry out his daily tasks.
Tolgos came clean on the dire state of his county and questioned his own ability to serve the constituents on a shoe-string budget.
He pointed at the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) as the reason for the county’s current predicament.
“We have been left with no option after the CRA declined to listen to our pleas for a favourable allocation in their new revenue disbursement formula,” he divulged.
Tolgos was very critical of the CRA formula which was unveiled last year, citing the fact that it reduces cash allocations to counties with small populations like his own.
The governor has been forced to recall several cars that offer essential services, in a bid to stay afloat.
Vehicles assigned to the health, finance, agriculture, and environment departments, as well as to the County Public Service Board and the office of chief of staff are among those that have been recalled in the cost-cutting initiative.
The county staff members were also instructed to steer clear of unnecessary travel, with six CEC member cars grounded as well.
Tolgos has also been hit by the austerity measures and confessed to borrowing a car from CEC members when his vehicle is unavailable, adding that the county had not bought new cars in the last two years.
His deputy, Wisley Rotich, warned that the county was at risk of shutting down and that discontinuing the training of county staff was a clear sign of their grave situation.
