40 Elected Homa Bay MCAs deny bribery claim of shs 3M each to pass budget.

 The County Assembly of Homa Bay.40 elected MCAs from the Assembly have denied bribery claims of shs 3m each to pass the Budget estimates of this financial year 2018/2019-Photo By Dickson Odhiambo.

By Dickson Odhiambo

     

July 4, 2018

40 Elected Homa Bay MCAs deny bribery claim of shs 3M each to pass budget.

THE 40 elected Members of the Homa Bay County Assembly have denied claims of bribery so as to pass their 2018/2019 financial year budget estimates.

The MCAs says that claims that they have been bribed at shs 3 million each so as to pass this financial year’s budget estimates is untrue and misleading.

Addressing the press in Kisumu on Tuesday after a row erupted in a Kisumu hotel between elected and nominated MCAs after the nominated MCAs accused their elected counterparts that they have been bribed so as to pass the budget estimates, the elected MCAs led by their leader of Majority Richard Ogindo and Chair of Budget Committee Nicholas Owaka, the MCAs said they have been in Kisumu on a retreat so as to itemize the Budget estimates before presenting it to the Assembly for discussions.

The Budget Chair says the MCAs have been discussing on how each of the ward’s development is to be clearly reflected in the budget estimate before being passed.

He says the 40 elected MCAs representing 40 wards have been submitting the priority projects proposals they want implemented within their wards to the Budget committee of the Assembly.

Owaka says the meeting was purely convened for the elected MCAs so as to submit the projects they want to be included in the current budget estimates of this fiscal year.

“Actually after our meeting as elected MCAs on the budget, we were set to meet our nominated counterparts at the hotel in Kisumu but it is unfortunate that our meeting delayed and the nominated MCAs became impatient and started making noise,” Owaka says.

He adds that what has prompted their budget estimates to delay is that the elected MCAs want the priority projects proposed in this financial year budget estimate be the ones to be implemented.

“What has actually prompted our budget estimates to delay is not that for us to get paid to pass it but we want to come up with a document which is accepted across the country and a document that will bring development to the people of Homa Bay County. We want a budget estimates that has projects called by their names and want the projects be included in the three documents namely County Integrated Development plan, the Annual Development Plan and the Budget estimates,” the Budget Chair says.

Homa Bay County Assembly Leader of Majority Richard Ogindo says the elected MCAs also want the Rapid Results Initiative which they passed in the previous supplementary Budget be implemented as agreed within 100 days when the Supplementary Budget was approved.

Ogindo says he is not impressed with the behavior of the nominated MCAs who have accused them of wanting to be bribed so as to pass the budget.

“I want to say that I am not happy with our counterparts who are the nominated MCAs who have thought that a budget estimate can only be passed if someone is given something and no elected MCA has been bribed to pass the budget. It is our responsibility to pass the budget,” he says.

The majority leader the MCAs want the 13.75 million per ward for development projects that was passed in the supplementary budget be implemented but nothing has happened because the Executive wing of the County Government have claimed that they have not received about 1.1billion from the national Treasury for development.

“ People from our wards yearns for development and this is why as the MCAs we must ensure that this  budget estimates for this financial year has projects which can be identified by their names,” he adds.

The County Integrated Development Plan which is a five year plan should be approved by the County Assembly and thereafter the Annual Development Plan {ADP} which is a subset of the CIDP should be tabled at the County Assemblies by September 1 every year.

By April 30 every year, the County’s Annual Budget Estimate should tabled at the County Assemblies and by 30 June every year which is the end of a financial year, the County’s Appropriation Bill should be approved by the Assemblies and the this allows the County Governments to spend against the budget from July 1 which is the beginning of a new financial year.

The Budget estimates should also be passed by the County Assemblies by June 30.

ENDS: