Senators have told off their National Assembly counterparts over demands that the health services docket revert back to the national government. The senators told MPs yesterday to keep off all devolved functions.
They expressed outrage over the recommendation by the assembly's Committee on Implementation that county governments cede their handling of the health docket to the national government, terming the calls as suspicious and meant to create a perception that devolution was not working.
The senators maintained that the health services had greatly improved since they were placed under county governments.
"There are deliberate efforts by our colleagues in the National Assembly to create a perception that devolution is not working. I wish they were arguing for more money to be given to counties for health services," said nominated Senator Naisula Lesuuda.
Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar, who led the protests against the move by the implementation committee said the calls were a systematic move to portray devolution as a weak concept. He accused the national government of engineering a scheme to snatch the function from the counties.
POOR FUNDING
"What we have seen is not an innocent debate but a well-choreographed scheme by people who want to undermine devolution. As senators, we should not sit pretty," Mr Omar said.
The senators accused MPs of being used by powerful individuals eyeing funds channeled to the health sector to fight devolution.
Mandera Senator Billow Kerrow termed the National Assembly as the main stumbling block in implementing health services under a devolved system, saying the sector has been bogged down by underfunding, which he blamed on MPs.
Mr Kerrow said despite 96 per cent of health services having been devolved, the MPs still had voted to give the ministry headquarters Sh50 billion in budgetary allocations, saying the money should have been chanelled to counties.
Kisumu's Anyang Nyong'o praised counties for improving health services despite poor funding by the national government. "There is an appetite by some individuals to revert the function to national government because of procurement deals," he said.
Migori's Wilfred Machage accused the MPs of overstepping their mandate. "The health sector was given Sh10 billion in the last financial year, which has been reduced to Sh2 billion in this year," he said.
Nandi Senator Stephen Sang said the Senate must resist any attempts to have the function taken away from county governments, saying this could lead to calls for more functions to revert.
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