Bold steps taken by SRC to reduce bloated public wage bill welcome

At a time when it is no longer tenable to have a bloated Civil Service, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission has taken the bold step to reduce salaries and abolish some allowances for State officials. At this year’s State of the Nation address in March, President Uhuru Kenyatta was categorical that the next batch of leaders coming into office after the August 8, 2017 elections would have to take a pay cut. At the time, SRC had decried a runaway bill that stood at Sh627 billion.

Initial attempts by SRC to regulate the salaries of Members of Parliament were thwarted by the 11th Parliament, which determined its own pay and perks. Whether the 12th Parliament will abide by SRC rules remains to be seen, for admittedly, it could use the same tricks their predecessors used to evade the SRC embrace.