Should we pay when public officers violate the law?

A recent newspaper news item on how Kenyan taxpayers continue to lose millions of shillings annually in court awards to public officers unfairly dismissed in the counties may have escaped the attention of many.

The underwhelming news report, based on court cases involving only five counties, reveals that staff who sought the intervention of the courts following arbitrary dismissals by governors were compensated to the tune of Sh100 million! The counties cited as having been forced to foot bills arising from illegal sackings are Nyeri, Laikipia, Embu, Isiolo, and Meru.