Embu county ward representatives have voiced concern over the devolved unit's huge pending bills.
As of June 30, 2018, the county owed suppliers and service providers a total of Sh1.279 billion.
The county has over the years suffered revenue shortfalls making it difficult to provide services to residents.
County Assembly Budget and Appropriation Committee chairman Harrison Mwaluko on Monday lamented that several projects had stalled after the county government missed its revenue targets and ran out of cash.
Mwaluko urged Embu residents to pay rates, rents and other taxes to help Governor Martin Wambora to implement development projects with ease.
The Mwea MCA was speaking at Makima market during a Public Participation forum on the 2019/2020 financial year’s budget.
He said the county intended to raise Sh470 million from local sources and Sh350 million as departmental Appropriation in Aid (A-in-A), bringing the total projected revenue to Sh820 million.
Mwaluko said failure to remit revenue due to local contractors had adversely affected the entrepreneurs.
Even as the chairman acknowledged that executive was cash-strapped, he said the pending bills will be cleared as soon as possible. He asked the executive to stick to the 70 per cent recurrent and 30 per cent development expenditure ratio.
He said the county would want to employ thousands of jobless youth, but this was impossible due to cash constraints.
The county assembly has been holding public participation sittings with residents in various wards seeking views on priority projects for incorporation in the budget for the 2019/2020 fiscal year.
President Uhuru Kenyatta on June 1, directed all ministries to settle pending bills on or before the end of the current financial year on June 30.
Uhuru said the debts have negatively affected many businesses.
