• Speaker rules that the Constitution exclusively gives National Assembly powers to determine the sharing of revenue.
• He said more detailed communication on the stalemate will follow.
Image: JACK OWUOR
Senators overstepped their constitutional mandate by publishing their own revenue bill, MPs said on Thursday.
Speaker Justin Muturi ruled that the Constitution exclusively gives the National Assembly powers to determine the sharing of revenue between the two levels of government.
The MPs were debating a motion by Majority leader Aden Duale on whether the Bill was properly tabled in the House. They said the Senate’s version of the Division of Revenue Bill 2019 is unconstitutional and threw it out.
The MPs opposed the second reading of the Senate Bill, arguing that it was not properly tabled and demanded that the Speaker declares the proposal unconstitutional.
“This is a misguided view that the governors and senators have been misleading Kenyans. Vertical sharing is a function of the National Assembly. If the courts have powers to give you money, the Judiciary has serious financial issues. They could easily give themselves money,” Duale said.
The Constitution stipulates that money bills, for which the DoRB is part, are generated by the county assembly.
“The Senate has no role in this cake - the national cake. The only institution that bakes, knows the ingredients, shares the cake is the NA. For us to disagree with the Senate, we must raise the mandatory two-thirds majority.”
Mvita MP Abdulswamad Nassir, who chairs the Public Investment Committee, said the Senate usurped powers it does not have. He said they should consider bringing it as a petition to the National Assembly.
Kiminini lawmaker Chris Wamalwa said, “Two wrongs don’t make a right; this is a House of tradition. It is a first time we are hearing Division of Revenue Bill is originating from the Senate. We should not entertain it.”
Muturi in his ruling agreed with the legislators, telling Senators to restrict themselves to determining national revenue among counties as provided for by the Constitution.
“Indeed, if we allow the chairman of the budget committee to introduce for second reading the Division of Revenue Bill originating from Senate, we shall not only breach our own rules, customs and tradition but also going against the Constitution,” Muturi said.
“I, therefore, rule in the interim the current Division of Revenue Bill shall not proceed and is withdrawn.”
He said more detailed communication on the stalemate will follow.
In the rejected Bill, senators were pushing for Sh335 billion as counties’ share of the national revenue while the National Assembly – which has also republished it seeks Sh316.5 billion for counties.
Edited by R.Wamochie