National Assembly Majority Leader and Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichung'wah has broken silence over the circumstances that culminated in MPs including those from Kenya Kwanza heckling him in Parliament on Tuesday.
Ichung'wah experienced a torrid time trying to prevail upon the MPs to remain calm after the MPs rebelled against the delayed disbursement of the National Government Constituencies Development Funds (NGCDF) from the Treasury.
Speaking during an interview on Spice FM on Thursday, the Kikuyu MP justified the delayed disbursement of the CDF stating that the national government is currently prioritizing the El Nino response to save Kenyan lives.
''We tried to tell them the commitments that are being given by the National Treasury but out of playing with the gallery, nobody was listening, the same thing was repeated yesterday and you saw they were all calm,'' Ichung'wah stated.
''You have to prioritise, so the government is in a position where they are looking at their cash position and asking themselves when do we start disbursing money for bursaries today when schools are opening in January or do we deal with flood mitigation measures''
Ichung'wah pointed out the fact that many Kenyans have been left homeless or without food making the El Nino response a greater need. He also argued that the government needs to deploy resources to fix roads that have been destroyed by floods, which he stressed is important since the government is keen on delivering emergency food to flood victims.
According to the National Assembly Majority Leader, the issue is especially pressing in certain parts of the country such as North Eastern which has seen critical services such as electricity connectivity disrupted.
''It is just that balancing act that the Treasury has to do and budgeting is about prioritising and knowing what comes first,'' he stated.
During the interview, Ichung'wah seized the opportunity to blame the previous government for the problems that are currently affecting the country.
'The situation that we are in did not begin with floods or drought, is a situation that has been built up over time,'' he added.
The delayed disbursement of the National Government Constituencies Development (NGCDF) has put the education of Kenyan learners in jeopardy heading into January when they are expected to report to school.
Ichung'wah's statement came after MPs from both sides of the political divide stormed out of Parliament protesting against the delayed disbursement.
“The government is always supporting their Executive programs to the detriment of CDF. So, what we are saying is that we have suspended all sittings, and all government business until CDF is extended to our schools. They must provide money now and not later, ” Nyando MP Jared Okello stated during the session.
