MPs Defy Uhuru's Major Directive In New Clever Way

Ndaragwa MP Jeremiah Kioni has sponsored a bill to parliament that is aimed at giving the National Assembly exclusive control on the expenditure of funds disbursed to them by the Treasury.

The Standard on Monday, September 30, reported that Kioni, who is also the chair of the National Assembly Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee, is moving the bill in a bid to create a parliamentary fund which would be spent at the MPs' discretion.

This bill comes not long after the government had announced austerity measures to scale down expenditure owing to the shrinking revenue competing with ballooning public debts.

Ndaragwa Member of Parliament Jeremiah Kioni. He has moved a bill that seeks to grant parliament exclusive control of funds disbursed to them by the treasury.

In the bill, the billions received by the MPs for each financial year would be exclusively handled by a newly set up parliamentary body, which would release the funds at the MPs' volition.

"Upon approval by the National Assembly, the expenditure of the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) shall be paid directly into the Parliamentary fund," the bill reads.

The Standard reported that if the bill sails through, the MP's salaries would be paid in good time and that they would not be held back from going on any bench-marking trips, and will be paid their per diem allowances immediately after their travels.

"There is established a fund to be known as the Parliamentary fund, which shall be administered by an officer appointed by the Parliamentary Service Commission. The fund shall be used for administrative purposes as may be necessary for the discharge of the functions of parliament," the bill read.

The bill also gives leeway to Members of Parliament to implement whatever project they feel like without facing scrutiny from the Controller of Budget or the Treasury.

Also enshrined in the bill is the provision that rules for the regulations of the funds would be crafted by parliament, and an officer appointed by the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) would be in charge of the administration of the funds.

The Standard reported that the dangers of these provisions are that the MPs expenditure could escape scrutiny by oversight bodies such as the Auditor General's office and the office of the Controller of Budget.

Labour Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yattani at a past event. He announced that the government was undertaking austerity measures so as to raise more funds for developmental purposes.

If the bill goes sails through, it would deal a big blow to President Kenyatta's bid to cut government expenditure in order to focus more funds on development projects.

The cuts are set to affect the Judiciary, Parliament, independent offices and commissions to free more money for development, currently allocated less than Sh700 billion of the Sh3 trillion budget.