Give us the money, speakers tell Serem team

The hurdles holding back the smooth roll out of devolution have increased with a new demand by all county speakers for 127 per cent pay increase.

The speakers have launched a pay battle with the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), which threatens to shut down county assemblies in the expected showdown.

They want their salaries raised from the current Sh225,000 to Sh512,545.

A proposal by Nairobi City County Speaker Alex ole Magelo on behalf of the County Speakers’ Panel also wants county representatives’ earnings increased by more than 350 per cent to Sh275,492 up from the current Sh79,000.

The demands could increase the public wages bill in the counties by more than Sh5 billion a year if the speakers have their way.

An unfavourable decision on their demands, they say, will lead to a strike that will paralyse operations of county governments country wide.

“SRC has become too obsessed with the welfare of governors at the expense of speakers and county reps. The chairperson (Ms Sarah Serem) should know the governors cannot move an inch without the county reps,” said Mr Magelo.

The speaker reiterated that there was an anomaly between salaries for county representatives and those of the National Assembly.

The detailed document, dubbed the “Magelo Package” by the Speakers’ Panel and seen by the Sunday Nation, proposes a harmonisation of the salaries in form of percentages.

For example, they want a county speaker to earn 80 per cent of the governor’s salary, just as the National Assembly speaker earns 80 per cent of the President’s pay.

43 PER CENT

Nyandarua County Speaker Wahome Ndegwa said the formula also gives county reps a salary equivalent to 43 per cent that of the Governor. “It has been borrowed from the fact that MPs earn 43 per cent of the President’s salary. All we want is harmony in salaries. Each group is serving a critical role in devolution,” said Mr Ndegwa.

This, he said, would give county assembly members some level of independence in discharging their duties. “At the moment, they earn only 12 per cent of the governor’s salary,” he added.

The proposals seek to overturn gazette notices published on February 28, this year, that set out the salaries and benefits payable to state officers.

The document further wants houses built for county speakers or their rents paid by county governments as well as a doubling of sitting allowances.

Mr Magelo says the Sh3,000 and Sh5,000 paid to committee members and their chairmen, respectively, was inadequate. “It isn’t worth the trouble. How many people can it buy lunch for at a decent place in town?” he said. He wants them paid Sh6,500 and Sh10,400 for every sitting.

The speakers’ appetite further spills to a demand of a Sh5 million medical cover up from the current Sh1 million and a provision for a county mortgage scheme payable within five years at a rate of 3 per cent, just like that of MPs.

They also want car loans and an additional Sh50,000 transport allowance every month. Further, Mr Magelo’s document calls for Sh80, 000 parliamentary duty allowance for each of the assembly’s top dog such as majority and minority leaders and the party whips.
But even as the clamour picked momentum this week, SRC said it was carrying out a job evaluation and analysis of factors that may not have been considered last year.

However, Ms Serem, reiterated this does not necessarily mean a salary raise.

A report on assessment of how constitutional office holders should be compensated being prepared by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) will be complete next month.

The speakers’ demands puts Ms Serem in yet another awkward position regarding public officers’ remuneration and allowances.

NEW CONSTITUTION

The commission has been on the spot as it tries to tame the rising wage bill occasioned by various positions created by the new Constitution.

After a vicious fight with Members of Parliament over their earnings, the commission yielded to pressure and gave in to demands that raised their salaries to almost a million shillings.

Early this month, Ms Serem asked the County Governments to increase their revenue base. “If counties exploit their resources, they will be able to pay better salaries,” she said.

This is an additional demand by the speakers who want their salaries to be paid by the County Government and not be drawn from the Consolidated Fund as is the case.

The senate has also picked a bone with her and said the way she treats the County Reps could determine the success or failure of counties.

She has, however, insisted that salary reviews will examine roles and job requirements and productivity alongside the availability of money to pay.

But even if PWC concludes its analysis on schedule, the earliest their proposals can be implemented is December or July next year where they can be backdated.

Attempts to reach Ms Serem were fruitless.