Parliament on Wednesday, August 5, passed an amendment in the National Assembly’s retirement benefits law that will see retired MPs get a Ksh100,000 monthly pension for life.
The amendment is set to only apply to MPs who served between 1984 and 2001 and will see their monthly pension rise from the current Ksh33,000.
The payout will be backdated to July 2010, offering the former MPs millions of shillings in arrears and adding a burden to taxpayers.
The Parliamentary Pensions Act, which was passed back in 2002, states that only MPs who serve for two terms or more are entitled to a monthly pension of at least Sh125, 000 for the rest of their lives.
MPs who had served for one term are refunded the equivalent of three times their monthly pension deductions plus 15% interest for every year served with the law not covering lawmakers who retired before 2002.
At least 290 MPs are set to benefit from the amendment. About 130 of them are already deceased, their dependants will be entitled to about half of the monthly payment.
The Bill will now be forwarded to the President for assent into law, committing taxpayers to the pension payments.
During the debate in Parliament on Wednesday, August 5, a number of MPs highlighted the plight of their retired colleagues.
"I want to thank the House for supporting the Parliamentary Pensions (Amendment) Bill. Many of the members who served between 1983-2001 are earning peanuts and this Bill attempts to corrects that," noted Suba South MP John Mbadi.
"Former Members of Parliament are going through many troubles and I urge the President to assent to this Bill," stated Suna East Member of Parliament Junet Mohamed.
According to the Parliamentary Budget Office, should the President assent the Bill into law the cost of sustaining the former MPs will rise to Sh15.075 million per month or Sh180.9 million annually.
