The ward representatives who met at a Speaker’s forum in Nairobi on Saturday said their pay should be pegged at 43 percent of what Governors were taking home per month.
NAIROBI, Kenya, May 18 – County Assembly ward representatives are now demanding for a gross pay of about Sh275,200.
Led by the Chairperson of the County Assembly Speaker’s forum Abdi Nuh, the County Assembly members stressed that their Sh79,000 monthly pay was barely enough to make ends meet.
Nuh noted that ward representatives were supposed to keep the Governors’ excesses in check as Members of Parliament kept tabs on the Executive.
He reasoned that there should be a parallel between the salaries of Governors and ward representatives.
“We say that MPs currently earn 43 percent of what the President earns so we thought that the same ratio must be accorded to the members of the County Assembly because they are also Members of Parliament at the County level in relation to a Governor,” he argued.
He added that County Assemblies would remain on recess until the matter was resolved because it was difficult to perform duties without a commensurate pay.
Nuh further explained that ward representatives had to meet their own travel expenses among others yet the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) remained mum to their cry.
Some of the County Assembly members have to travel long distances to attend sittings in their County Assemblies.
“We are not here doing a pro bono job even as we believe and concur with the President that work has to go on. The SRC must also show why and how the Assemblies must resume duty,” he said.
While the ward representatives insist that their reasons for a pay demand were valid enough, the SRC has expressed difficulties in reviewing the pay perks upwards.
The SRC has time and again maintained that the current economic situation will not be able to support a pay demand.
Members of Parliament are also canvassing for a pay higher than the current Sh532,000 they are earning.
“The government has set an economic growth target of between seven and 10 percent. To achieve this, it is imperative that the public wage bill which currently stands at Sh458 billion is reduced to a manageable level,” Serem had said on Monday.
Ngewa ward representative Karungo wa Thangwa had in an earlier interview with Capital FM News also expressed the difficulties of working with the Sh79,000 pay.
Thangwa who was a broadcaster with Kameme FM however makes do with his earnings.
“We all need money but we need to start working for the electorate and besides now is not the time to start asking for money,” he argued.
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