• Governors have written to county workers' union warning of July salary delay.
• Workers say counties are yet to remit Sh42 billion deducted from their salaries to statutory bodies.
Image: FILE
A major strike looms in counties after workers dared the governors to delay their July salaries in the wake of a cash crunch in the devolved units.
Counties have been hit by a serious cash problem occasioned by the stalemate in Parliament over the Division of Revenue Bill that allocates money to counties.
Kenya County Government Workers Union has warned the governors of dire consequences including paralysing operations in the counties if the salaries are delayed.
“County governments should be prepared to face the wrath of the county workers should they fail to pay July salaries on time,” Secretary-General Roba Duba warned on Friday.
KCGWU is an umbrella body that brings together employees of the 47 county governments. Nearly 80 per cent of all county workers are members of the union.
Roba was responding to a letter by Council of Governors chairman Wycliffe Oparanya warning county workers, contractors and suppliers to prepare for tough times ahead because of the stalemate.
“It is apparent that county governments will be unable to pay salaries and service providers in good time as funds will not be disbursed by the National Treasury,” Oparanya said in the letter copied to the worker's unions, banks and all county assemblies.
But Duba reacted angrily to Oparanya’s letter, threatening to mobilise all the workers from across the 47 devolved units to walk off the job and cripple operations.
He said innocent workers should not be victims of the ugly supremacy battle pitting senators, members of the National Assembly and National Treasury.
“We wish to advise you that salaries and subsequent statutory deductions are recurrent expenditures which should not be subjected to the same kind circus as money meant for the contractual and other miscellaneous and often dubious pending bills,” he said.
The official said delaying salaries will subject workers to untold suffering, adding that the move will amount to a violation of their rights as enshrined in the Constitution.
He said the CoG and government have not taken the plight of the Kenyan workers seriously owing to the huge debts owed to them. Counties are yet to remit Sh42 billion deducted from workers’ salaries to statutory bodies, he said.
“In addition, working conditions in the counties have worsened since the inception of devolution. Workers' welfare has been thrown into the back seat by a majority of the governors.”
Counties are in a serious crunch after members of the National Assembly and senators failed to agree on the crucial bill that allocates money to the devolved units.
The initial Bill that allocated the devolved units Sh310 billion flopped at mediation after the two Houses clashed on the amount.
Already, each of the houses has originated their own bills and passed them with the Senate allocating Sh335 billion and the National Assembly giving counties Sh316 billion.
Governors have sued the National Treasury and the National Assembly over the stalemate that has now landed the counties in trouble.
On Thursday, President Uhuru Kenyatta waded into the debate saying the government has no extra money to give the counties.
Edited by R.Wamochie