Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana, county reps disagree over financial plan

By ONESMUS NZIOKA

Makueni County: Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana has threatened to quit his position over a tussle with county representatives on the assembly budgetary allocation.

The reps are demanding Sh1 billion for assembly operations, out of the total Sh5 billion budget for the county.

Kibwana terms this as outrageous and prohibitive and says if it is effected, he will step down for someone else to oversee its implementation.

According to the County Finance Bill presented to the house for approval, the assembly has been allocated Sh500 million for its operations, up from 88 million it had been allocated earlier.

The MCA’s have however, rejected the allocation terming it untenable and unable to meet its targets.

Today is expected to be a busy day in the assembly as members debate on the bill, with a vow to emend it to increase the assembly allocation to Sh900 million.

The county executive, through the office of the governor, has issued a warning to the MCAs that they will mobilize the citizens to tame the MCAs’ ‘insatiable demands’.

The office of the governor has already placed an advert with local vernacular stations requesting locals to turn in large numbers to follow the finance bill debate proceedings from the assembly chambers.

Analysts have termed the move as a veiled expose of the county representatives’ ‘gluttony’ by the office of the governor with intent to portray them as self-seekers and enemies of development.

Over the weekend, Kibwana and a contingent of his cabinet members attended several functions in Kibwezi constituency where he requested residents to help him deal with the county representatives.

“I can assure you, we shall not give them (assembly members) any single dime above the Sh500 million set for their operations. If they pinch anything more than that, I will come to you so that you can deal with them,” said Prof Kibwana at Kiteng’ei Primary School when he launched a community ICT center.

This rallying call to check on the excesses of the MCAs seems to have been bought by the residents who pledged support to the governor to tame them.

“We are ready to sack these county representatives if they are the inhibitors of the county development. We cannot be held hostage by few individuals who only want to fill their stomachs,” said Ibrahim Abdi Willy, the Thome wa Akamba association patron.

Mtito Andei Ward Representative Shadrack Mwau who was present at the event said the little misunderstandings between them and the governor are meaningless and would soon fade away once they settle down for work.