•The MCAs have not paid for two months, a state of affairs blamed on the wrangling between the executive and the Speaker.
• The problem was aggravated by the return of Jacob Ngwele in April as the accounting officer on Governor Mike Sonko's orders.
Nairobi MCAs and assembly staff resumed plenary sittings Tuesday - broke.
They have not been paid for two months, a state of affairs blamed on the wrangling over finance between the executive and the Office of the Speaker.
The 122 MCAs, 150 assembly employees and 300 ward staff are owed Sh120 million in April and May salaries.
Last month, the delay was blamed on the deepening push and pull between the executive and the county assembly.
On Sunday, Finance executive Allan Igambi told the Star that the executive had processed all the salaries.
“We did our part as the executive and processed the assembly salaries. If there is any delay whatsoever then the speaker should be in a position to clarify,” Igambi said.
Yesterday, speaker Beatrice Elachi did not respond to either our calls or text messages.
The assembly's human resource office generates MCAs' and staff payroll which is signed by the clerk, uploaded to the IFMIS and forwarded to the executive for payment.
The payroll is closed by the 20th of every month to give the assembly time to request for the money.
Woodley MCA Abraham Njihia said the non-payment of the two months'salaries is due to the wrangling between Elachi and assembly clerk Jacob Ngwele.
“Last month Ngwele signed the release of the funds but the speaker refused to approve,” Njihia said.
Roysambu ward representative Peter Warutere blamed the Office of the Speaker.
“For two months now we don’t have our salaries and the staff too in the assembly are stranded. We know the problem is the Office of the Speaker and she knows what ought to be done," Warutere said.
Eastleigh North MCA Osman Adow said it was unfortunate for them not to paid at a time that Covid-19 was wreaking havoc on people's pockets.
“Some of our residents depend on the little we give them as MCAs and now we are just stranded with empty pockets,” Adow said.
The problem seems to have been aggravated by the return of Ngwele as the accounting officer on the instruction of Governor Mike Sonko in April.
He was reinstated as the assembly's signatory to its account at the Integrated Financial Management and Information System (IFMIS) and at the CBK.
He had been removed from the position last December.
MCAs blamed the county treasury for Ngwele's return to the IFMIS despite him being considered "a stranger" after the assembly adopted a report on his removal as the clerk.
Last November, the MCAs voted not to recognise Ngwele as the clerk of the assembly.
County chief Finance officer Halkano Waqo said Ngwele was not returned to the office to annoy the assembly but in the obedience of the court order.
“There was a court order ruling that Ngwele was the substantive clerk. If we do not follow the law we can be sued. We only acted because of the court order. Nothing more," Waqo said.
- mwaniki fm