Wednesday, 28 August 2013

Imprudent use of public funds is Kenya's undoing

President Uhuru Kenyatta flew back into the country last Tuesday after what has been billed as a massively successful trip to Russia and China. The President's engagement with the Chinese is particularly worthy of note granted the billions of shillings Beijing has extended to Kenya for investment in various projects aimed at improving the economy.

News of this funding has touched off so much ecstasy among a section of Kenyans with some commentators describing the president's move as a feat unrivaled in its magnitude and reach. This jubilation is, however, in my view, misplaced and largely springs from a misapprehension of facts. What appears to have escaped the attention of many is that the Sh425 billion is a loan and not a grant.

Before China extended this loan to Kenya, our national debt stood at Sh1.9 trillion or thereabout. With the additional Sh425 billion from China, the debt has moved to Sh2.3 trillion. It is true that if the Sh425 billion will be put to the intended use, Kenya is bound to reap pleasantly. Our dilapidated infrastructure will certainly receive a serious face-lift. The standards of living for a significant number of Kenyans will in all likelihood improve.

But if recent developments in regard to handling of public funds are anything to go by, Kenyans have more than enough reasons to worry that a substantial portion of the funds from China may as well find their way into a few privileged individual pockets. Cases of financial malpractice among people holding public office have been on the increase.

The Judicial Service Commission's recent move to send the Judiciary's Chief Registrar Gladys Boss Shollei on compulsory leave has brought to the fore information hitherto unknown to many. Kenyans have, for instance, learned with a measure of incredulity that members of the Judicial Service Commission, who are allegedly serving on part time basis, take home as much as Sh1.6 million a month. Last year, the JSC reportedly held 247 meetings, with each commissioner earning Sh80,000 in allowances per meeting.

Not long ago, one of the commissioners, now famed for his arrogance and delusional sense of importance, penned an article in a leading Sunday newspaper in which he poured cold water on constitutional commissions terming them as an unnecessary burden to the taxpayer. He went on to suggest that, like the JSC, the commissioners in the numerous constitutional commissions should serve on part time basis and should be reduced to a bear minimum. This, according to him, would cut down on the costs of running them and save funds to be utilised on other pressing issues. It is almost unbelievable that this same commissioner who is allegedly serving on part time basis may be earning more than what commissioners serving on full time basis take home at the end of the month.

On the heels of the profligacy obtaining in the JSC, Kenya's notoriously rapacious legislators are again scheming to push their monthly pay upwards. Plans are underway to amend Article 260 of the constitution to exclude MPs from the definition of state officers. This amendment is aimed at giving MPs a free hand in increasing their pay as and when they feel like. And even before this amendment, the legislators are already scheming to increase their monthly pay from Sh1.2 million to Sh1.4 million. In an astute move aimed at gaining support from the Judiciary and county governments, the legislators are also proposing a massive increment in the allowances paid to judges, magistrates and members of the county assemblies.

By the same token, Suba MP John Mbadi is in the process of introducing a Bill on retirement benefits for top government officials in the House. The Retirement Benefits (Deputy President and Designated State Officers) Bill 2013, if passed will see former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka and other top officials each earn between Sh49 million and Sh85 million a year in retirement perks. This amount includes what is to be spend on paying staff assigned to them and other services. Using the minimum amount, Sh49 million, to compute what these top officials will be earning monthly, it translates to about Sh4.1 million. If you take the maximum amount, Sh85 million, the monthly package comes to about Sh7.1 million.

Looking at this unmitigated extravagance, it is hard to believe that Kenya is a third world country. The question many Kenyans are asking is, where will the money to pay these salaries, allowances and retirement benefits come from? And even if we can afford to pay all these benefits what will be spend on development projects geared towards making the lives of the majority better?

My suggestion is that MPs should step back and rethink their push for more and more money. A salary and allowances totaling to Sh1.2 million a month is already too high for a country like Kenya. The government should also put in place measures to ensure that public funds are put to good use. Strictly enforcing laws that criminalise misappropriation of public funds, such as the Public Officer Ethics Act, will go a long way in curbing embezzlement of public resources.

This article was published in the Star newspaper on Saturday 31st August 2013
 

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