MPs open all-out war over plan to cut perks

MPs and Senators during the State of the Nation Address by President Uhuru Kenyatta at Parliament on Thursday 04/04/19. [Boniface Okendo,Standard]

Furious lawmakers yesterday threatened to scrap allowances of senior civil servants, including Cabinet secretaries and principal secretaries, should they lose the battle to keep their Sh250,000 house allowance.

Over 200 lawmakers, who included the speakers of the two Houses, met at Parliament’s main chambers and vowed to launch an all-out war to protect the money, which they argue they are entitled to.

The MPs said they will ensure all State officers do not get the allowances.

Speaker of the National Assembly Justin Muturi is said to have assured the MPs that the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) is prepared ‘to go all the way’ to ensure that MPs do not lose the allowances.

 “This matter will get murkier. The Speaker assured us that we will fight this matter to the end. He told us that PSC will move to court to fight for us. We will not relent. We know that SRC is not acting on its own. There is a powerful hidden hand that is pushing them,” said an MP who attended the meeting.

The money was included in the PSC budget and each lawmaker has already pocketed over Sh2.5 million in backdated allowances.

Last week, however, the High Court slammed the brakes on the payments, angering the MPs and setting the stage for a legal battle between Parliament and SRC which obtained the orders.

MPs also claimed there was a "hidden hand" in SRC’s tough stance, arguing that the commission was not acting on its own and had succumbed to pressure "from above".

As a first step, the lawmakers agreed, they would move to court to seek to set aside conservatory orders obtained by the salaries commission, before activating Plan B should they lose the eventual battle.

Most MPs were tight-lipped on the finer details of the informal meeting, but sources willing to speak on condition of strict confidence told The Standard that the forum provided an opportunity for the lawmakers to vent their frustrations with the salaries commission and other forces "that do not like us".

During the session, the MPs were given a free hand to express their views, opening a floodgate of opinions that saw lawmakers question the SRC budget, specifically the purchase of vehicles for commissioners.

The MPs claimed that the Fourth Estate had joined those "fighting parliamentarians".