Manyatta Constituency MP Gitonga Mukunji has proposed a motion to transfer the Member of County Assembly (MCAs) funding from the county government to the National government.
Speaking during the National Assembly proceedings on Wednesday, February 21, Mukunji vouched for autonomy for the County Assembly leaders, as motivation to enable them to carry out their duties more effectively.
“I believe that not only should we give them ward funds, but they should also be clearly autonomous and be funded directly from the budget. This will make them more effective and able to carry out their duties of planning the county governments,” he stated.
Defending his proposal, Mukunji noted that overreliance on governors for funding limits the MCAs' ability to deliver on their duties, which include oversight over county organs.
“I have seen many members of County Assembly begging and singing praises to their governors so that they can survive,” he added.
In accordance with Article 207 of the constitution, Members of County Assemblies (MCAs) are mandated to oversee the budget and expenditure of the county government, as well as approve borrowing by the county government under Article 212 of the Constitution.
In addition, members of the County Assembly vet and approve nominees shortlisted for appointment into county public offices. To ensure credibility and professionalism in the hiring process, MCAs are tasked with doing background checks on individuals interested in holding public office, as it is a critical role.
Other roles include organizing public forums for public participation on county government plans, by presenting the views before the assembly to be considered during implementation of various things.
The Members of Parliament during the same seating passed the affordable housing bill by a simple majority, granting President Ruto victory as he pushed for the bill to sail through.
"I want to give you the following guidance. The Majority Leader and Minority Leader, you are both right. This is a Bill that concerns counties... So from here, the Bill will go to the Senate," National Assembly speaker, Moses Wetangula stated.
Azimio Members of Parliament however stormed out of the assembly, after disagreeing with the decision to pass the bill, claiming that all their proposed amendments were rejected by the House.
"We want to tell members of the Azimio coalition that many of them filed amendments as early as yesterday but unfortunately it looks like there are instructions from the Kenya Kwanza regime that the Bill must be passed without any amendments," Suna East Junet stated.
