Members of Parliament affiliated to Kenya Kwanza called for constitutional review, poking holes into the current county government structure.
Appearing on Inooro TV on Monday, February 13, Murang'a Senator Joe Nyutu and Gatundu North Member of Parliament Njoroge Kururia questioned the relevance of a senator.
They stated that a senator was the leader with the least work in a county as Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) always run the county with the governor.
Nyutu called on President William Ruto's government to re-think the structure, arguing that the current organisation was costly to the taxpayers.
"We should have a national debate. We should come up with an agreement on who is important in the county government. Am in agreement with this.
A lot of money gets lost through the many leadership slots. As a senator sometimes I just get surprised that the budget has already been passed by the governor," he noted.
The Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Education stated that though being allocated with overseeing duties, he felt that the MCAs were already doing so.
"MCA is the person responsible for oversight because he is the one who works with the governor in all his plannings. As a senator, even if I oppose what has been done by the governor, it will be a kind of witch-hunting because the MCAs have already approved. That's why they are also responsible for impeaching the governor," he stated.
On the other hand, Kururia, who previously rejected a dam set to be constructed in the constituency, argued that the current structure was leading to waste of resources.
"Senators perform the same duties as MCAs. Apart from representing in the senate, he has no other duty. There is no committee that appears before the senator, so whatever senators do in impeaching and oversights is the same duties MCAs are performing.
What he will do alone is the same done by all MCAs, their speakers and their budget. In the county, the only duty he has is attending functions. When it comes to projects, he can only speak through MCA or Governor," he noted.
According to the Kenyan constitution, a senator is responsible for lawmaking, determining the allocation of national revenue among counties as per Article 217.
The Senator also oversees national revenue allocated to county governments and determining any resolution to impeach the President and Deputy President as per the provisions of Article 145 and 150(2) of the Constitution respectively.
The MCAs' duties are to vet and approve nominees for appointment to county public offices as may be provided for in this Act or any other law, perform the roles set out under Article 185 of the Constitution.
MCAs also approve the budget and expenditure of the county government in accordance with Article 207 of the Constitution.
Further, the legislation contemplated in Article 220(2) of the Constitution, guided by Articles 201 and 203 of the Constitution, approve the borrowing by the county government in accordance with Article 212 of the Constitution, approve county development planning and perform any other role as may be set out under the Constitution or legislation.
Kururai won elections as an independent MP before joining the Kenya Kwanza alliance after meeting with Ruto on Tuesday, August 16, 2022.
