Governors have been dealt a blow after the the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) reiterated that top government officials who have not constructed residential homes will be forced to pay their own rent.
According to the commission's chairperson Lyn Mengich, the June 30, 2022 deadline that required all 47 counties to construct houses for the governors, deputy governors, and assembly speakers still stood.
She told the Nation that the deadline was not extended and those officials who have not met the deadline will be forced to pay their housing bills.
"The deadline was not extended therefore our circular stands," she declared.
An official notice was issued on May 20, 2019, directing all county officials to construct their residences before the deadline.
The commission had also extended the deadline twice.
According to the commission, none of the devolved counties has completed the construction of the residences of the county assembly speaker.
She also warned that the defiant counties may be summoned by the Auditor General for questioning.
Mengich revealed that despite some officials living in their homes, they were requesting house allowances. SRC demands that all residences be constructed on county-owned lands.
For the construction of the governor's residence, SRC capped the amount to Ksh45 million, Ksh40 million for deputy governors, and Ksh35 million for speakers.
In October 2022, Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja rejected the County Government's plan to spend Ksh500 million on the construction of his official residence.
"I have asked them to reallocate the money to other priority projects like the construction of markets and creating jobs for our young people," Sakaja stated.
