• National Assembly Majority Whip Washiali says Treasury has no mandate to control Judiciary's budget, which he calls unprocedural and illegal.
• Cuts later restored after a national uproar.
National Assembly Majority Chief Whip Benjamin Washiali has denounced the National Treasury for slashing the budget of the Judiciary.
He said on Saturday Washiali that said Parliament will summon Treasury CS Yatani and his Principal Secretary to answer the queries about why they alter laws that put in place by the National Assembly and the Senate.
After the cuts generated national outrage, the money was restored. That followed a nationally televised press conference on Monday last week by Chief justice David Maraga who said the cuts are punitive and hurt the people.
Washiali spoke in Kakamega during a funds drive for the SDA church on Saturday.
He said the Treasury was usurping the powers and privileges of the national
"It is illegal to reduce national budget allocations without going through the Parliament through austerity measures. As at now our brothers at Treasury are using the back door to bring laws that are not appropriate," he stated.
A month ago Treasury acting CS Ukur issued a directive proposing cuts of recurring and development budgets of up to 50 per cent in the Judiciary. A court later stopped the government from further slashing the funds.
The Law Society of Kenya sued the National Treasury and the Attorney General Paul Kiharu protesting the budget cuts.
“We want the law to be followed," Washiali said.
The MP for Mumias East said only members of the National Assembly and the Senate are empowered to deal with the national budget.
“We receive proposals from the Executive and sieve through them before giving our recommendations and approval. Budget, revenue-raising, revenue allocation, and revenue appropriation are the work of the parliament and therefore the Treasury imposing putting austerity measures is an illegality," Washiali said.
He added that if the Treasury has a problem in revenue-raising it should go back to Parliament and make a proposal to amend act allocating funds.
(Edited by V. Graham)