Wage bill: Is Ruto walking the talk or just engaging in doublespeak?

President William Ruto and SRC Chair Lynn Mengich during the Third National Wage Bill Conference in Bomas of Kenya. [PCS]

For the one year and seven months President William Ruto has held the reins of power, he has constantly been scratching his head formulating measures to help him achieve a 35 per cent wage bill-to-revenue ratio.

In what is seen as his first step to achieve his three-year master plan, his Cabinet recently approved the reduction in payment of intern doctors to Sh70,000 down from Sh200,000 monthly.

His administration has also mooted plans to scrap the status of government employees as permanent and pensionable and have the civil servants hired on contract.

A plan for the creation of Chief Administrative Secretaries (CASs) positions and their subsequent remuneration by the State has, however, exposed the government to doublespeak.

On the one hand, Ruto is trying to tame the runaway wage bill that currently stands at Sh4.2 billion but on the other, he is determined to reward loyalists and losers of the August 2022 general elections by assenting to the National Government Administration Laws (Amendment) Bill 2023 that seeks to entrench in law the CAS positions.

The Bill, which sources intimate is due for assent as early as next week, hands Ruto a free hand to appoint as many CASs as he wishes, and with it positions that gobble up a significant amount from the State’s purse.

It however states that the remuneration of CASs shall be determined by the Public Service Commission (PSC) on the recommendation of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC).

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According to a job evaluation report by SRC seen by The Sunday Standard, the CASs are expected to earn a monthly salary of Sh780,000 if appointed, which is higher than the Sh710,000 take-home for Members of Parliament.

The salary includes Sh459,113 in basic pay, a Sh165,000 house allowance, and Sh155,887 in salary market adjustment. The CASs will also be entitled to an official government vehicle of engine capacity not exceeding 3,000cc.

“SRC has determined the monetary worth of the job of a CAS at Grade F1 and would like to advice on the attendant remuneration and benefits structure,” reads a letter dated March 14, 2023, by SRC chairperson Lyn Mengich and copied to Head of Public Service Felix Koskei, National Treasury Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo, Public Service PS Amos Gathecha and Auditor General Nancy Gathungu.

Also included in the deal is an annual medical cover comprising Sh10 million for inpatient, Sh300,000 for outpatient, maternity Sh150,000, dental Sh75,000 and optical Sh75,000.

The medical benefits shall be extended to one spouse and up to four children below the age of 25 fully dependent on the CAS.

The evaluation report also indicates that a CAS will be eligible for a car loan of up to Sh8 million and a mortgage facility not exceeding Sh35 million with an applicable interest of three per cent per annum.

Should the Head of State proceed with the CAS appointments, it will cost taxpayers Sh9.4 million to accommodate a single CAS.

This means that should the president decide to appoint 50 CASs in line with his proposal of March 2023, then taxpayers will have to cough up Sh468 million to accommodate them.

At the same time, the government is embroiled in a standoff with Health workers over pay.

“All we are asking for is similar to what the Cabinet Secretaries earn in entertainment allowance…If the issue of intern doctors is not implemented as per the CBA, then we will be setting a precedent, other doctors’ gains will not be guaranteed and we can’t have that,” said Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) Secretary General Davji Atellah.

All eyes are now on President Ruto who finds himself in a catch-22 situation; torn between putting his words on managing the wage bill to action, or appointing his allies and further exacerbating an already dire situation.