Stringent controls needed to curb wastage in public expenditure

It is no longer in doubt that the wage bill has crossed the red line. In a report released last week, Controller of Budget Agnes Odhiambo expressed concern over the ballooning counties' wage bill. Not that the national government is any better. In fact, since independence, the Government has come under heavy criticism for wastage, inefficiency, indiscipline, red tape and deep-rooted corruption.

So stung by an ever-increasing wage bill that is not matched by productivity, the Government, through the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), has lined up a job evaluation exercise in a bid to harmonise the salaries of civil servants, as well as cut down on the huge wage bill.