Entrusting the National government with the management of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) elicited sharp reactions from Members of Parliament. To wit, CDF has been the preserve of Members of Parliament who used it to initiate development projects in their areas of jurisdiction but was, in many instances, put to improper use.
A few weeks ago, Members of Parliament had vowed not to approve the 2016/2017 budget proposals unless they regained control of CDF. This is in spite of a 2015 High Court of Kenya ruling that MPs control of CDF was unconstitutional.
The court’s contention was that the work of MPs is to make laws. Put it another way, the Legislature takes the Executive to task over the use of public funds. Any other way, it said, amounts to a breach of the 2010 Constitution that emphasises the separation of powers among the three Arms of Government.
In light of a report by the Auditor General on CDF for the 2013/2014 period that reveals massive accounting inaccuracies and even the absence of supporting documents and losses that run into hundreds of millions of shillings: procurement laws were flouted while projects stalled after millions were sunk in.
It is therefore fair to demand that action should be taken against the culprits. This should include attaching assets acquired from the illicit proceeds.
