Sending electoral commissioners home early will cost Sh200 million

Kenyans could pay the nine commissioners of the electoral commission almost Sh200 million should they leave office before the end of their term next year.

Jubilee made good its pledge for dialogue over the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission using a joint parliamentary select committee.

Cord on the other hand agreed to talks but on Friday threw in a raft of demands.

President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto have always maintained that Jubilee was ready for talks but only following the provisions of the Constitution — through parliament.

Cord has always maintained it wants talks outside parliament.

At the Jubilee parliamentary group meeting a day after the President’s announcement, National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale said the members will have only 30 days to break the impasse around the commission.

“The Jubilee team for the joint select committee will have 30 days to report back to Parliament. The above term-limit is given by our determination not to interfere with the date of the 2017 General Election,” Mr Duale said after the meeting.
It means the earliest the committee can finish its work and report back to Parliament is some time in mid or late July. The commissioners may then leave by August after Parliament goes through the committee proposals, some 15 months earlier than November 9, 2017 when their term officially ends.

The tidy gross figure of Sh198 million is based on the Kenya Gazette Notice 2888 of March 1, 2013 by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission on the payments and other benefits of State Officers in the constitutional commissions and independent offices.

The package for each commissioner would range between Sh20 and Sh30 million inclusive of 31 per cent gratuity for each year served.

Some commissioners, who spoke in confidence, have expressed a desire to resign on one condition — that they get their money before they leave office.

Cord, along with some religious, diplomatic and human rights groups, have been calling for the exit of the current IEBC commissioners.

The commissioners, who are advancing the pay-us-before-we-go stance, cite the suffering of their predecessors, whose pay dispute has been in court since 2008 when the 10th Parliament disbanded the Electoral Commission of Kenya.

Electoral commission chairman Ahmed Issack Hassan told the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee of the National Assembly in May that he would rather go to jail than resign. “We are not guilty of anything, and so we will not agree to resign by pleading guilty so that we can get some form of compensation,” said Mr Hassan. “I would rather go to jail.”

But whenever they leave, they would still be paid Sh198 million minus other benefits if they remained in office.

The Sh198 million does not include other benefits they would have received if they were to stay until November 9, 2017. These include phone air time, security, car, medical cover and sitting allowances.

An Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission commissioner enjoys an in-patient medical cover of up to Sh10 million, outpatient cover of Sh300,000, Sh150,000 in maternity cover as well as a dental and optical cover of Sh75,000 each.

The electoral commission has nine commissioners — Mr Hassan, vice chairperson Lillian Mahiri-Zaja, Mohammed Alawi, Thomas Letangule, Albert Bwire, Kule Godana, Abdullahi Sharawe, Muthoni Wangai and Yusuf Nzibo.

With a maximum gross monthly pay of almost Sh1.1 million inclusive of Sh324,758 in allowances, Mr chairman Hassan stands to pocket 15 months pay or about Sh16 million in salary if he quits by next month.

His monthly gross pay is at par with auditor-general Edward Ouko, Judges of the Supreme Court and the chairman of the defunct Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution Charles Nyachae.
Mr Hassan is also entitled to a service gratuity pay of a further Sh14 million calculated at 31 per cent of his annual basic pay of Sh9.1 million for every year worked.

IEBC vice chairperson Lillian Mahiri-Zaja who earns a maximum monthly gross pay of Sh895,270 inclusive of Sh268,581 in allowances going by the SRC Gazette Notice would pocket a gross of Sh13 million for the 15 months being the remainder of her term if the Joint Select Committee concluded its work by August this year.

Like Mr Hassan, the IEBC vice chairperson Zaja is entitled to service gratuity pay 31 per cent of her annual basic pay for every year worked, which translates to about Sh12 million.

As per the 2013 SRC Gazette Notice, each IEBC commissioner earns a maximum gross of Sh725,806 inclusive of Sh217,742 in allowances. Assuming the commissioners resigned or were forced out at the end of July each of them would be entitled to Sh11 million for the 15 months left of their contracts. This translates to Sh76 million for the seven commissioners.

In addition, the commissioners would get a send-off package of Sh9 million each or a combined Sh66 million calculated as 31 per cent of their annual gross basic pay for each year worked.