Drop posts to save on costs, says Cotu boss

Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Cotu) has called for a national referendum to amend the Constitution to tame the ballooning public wage bill.

Central Organisation of Trade Unions Secretary-General Francis Atwoli on Monday said the duplication of roles was causing a wastage of public funds.

In a statement to the media, Mr Atwoli said both the national and county governments should do away with positions that unnecessarily burden taxpayers.

Citing the Senate, the National Assembly and county assemblies, he said some of the functions performed by these institutions could be harmonised to cut costs.

“In counties, we now have ministers (county executives) just like at the national level. All these positions have huge financial implications, which have turned Kenya into a spending country at the expense of the taxpayer,” said Mr Atwoli.

He said the union was ignored when it raised the matter. The governor and county commissioner positions were among those that needed to be reviewed to enhance proper coordination.

“Apparently, employees are overburdened amid poor wages, job insecurity and poor working conditions,” he said.

LEADERS TO BLAME
At the same time, on Monday, senators and MPs said some of their colleagues were to blame for failure by the government to pay salaries and allowances on time.

The lawmakers, particularly from the Opposition, accused their colleagues of failing to offer constructive criticism to the government.

Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale said the cash crunch facing the government was mainly due to the MPs’ failure to discharge their constitutional mandate without fear or favour.

“They have, instead, become appendages of the presidency,” said Dr Khalwale.

Nyamira Senator Mong’are Bw’okong’o said the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) was getting its priorities wrong.

He challenged National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi, who is also the PSC chairman, to stop sugar-coating the underlying issues.

“MPs got their pay slips almost a week before they received their salaries. This has never happened.”