The national treasury has been asked to hasten implementation of E-procurement so as to release funds meant for county governments.
Governor Irungu Kang’ata backed by Kitui senator Enoch Wambua on Monday said slow implementation of the new procurement system has delayed remittance of funds to devolved administrations, thus hindering delivery of services.
Governor Kang’ata who hosted the senator and a team of MCAs from Kitui, Machakos and Makueni counties warned that the prolonged delay has paralyzed operations in devolved units thus threatening delivery of essential services.
He observed that counties have gone for three consecutive months without receiving their equitable share allocation from the exchequer.
The current situation, he noted, has left the county governments unable to pay staff salaries and suppliers, or purchase essential drugs for hospitals.
“County government workers are suffering from delayed salaries, and bursary payments have been stopped. Many students are at home because their parents and guardians cannot afford school fees. In Murang’a we have needy students whose full fees are paid by the county government but now the learners are finding it hard to go back to school for the third term,” Kang’ata decried.
He continued, “Hospitals are running out of medicines, and suppliers are pulling out because of unpaid bills. All this is a direct result of the outstanding issue of e-procurement.”
The governor explained that the introduction of the electronic government procurement (e-GP) system has disrupted budget processing and disbursement, since funds cannot be released until county budgets are fully integrated into the digital platform.
He urged the relevant government agencies to fast-track completion of the system so that services can return to normal.
Kang’ata added that the lack of funding has stalled key county programmes, ranging from road construction projects to bursary allocations, warning that development gains have already risked being rolled back.
On his part, Kitui Senator backed Kang’ata’s sentiments, saying the national treasury has a constitutional duty to release funds to counties not later than the 15th of every month.
He noted that delays not only disrupt service delivery but also undermine the principles of devolution.
“The Treasury should be a completely independent body, free from the influence of the national government, so that it can manage disbursement of funds fairly to both levels of government,” Wambua said.
“The rollout of e-procurement has also been mishandled. You cannot just stop one system and abruptly start another, it is supposed to be gradual. Implementation of the new system could be done first by piloting,” he added.
The senator stressed that counties across the country are facing similar challenges, with staff unrest over unpaid salaries, bursary beneficiaries stranded at home, and development projects suspended.
He said the senate passed an allocation of revenue bill months ago saying it’s the responsibility of the national treasury to remit funds to county governments.
Wambua urged the Treasury to address the challenges in the e-procurement rollout and release funds immediately to avert a total shutdown of devolved functions.
Meanwhile the senator underscored development projects being implemented in Murang’a County saying other devolved units should emulate programmes being implemented by Governor Kang’ata’s administration.
“With my team we have been able to learn and witness what governor Kang’ata has done. This is the real aim of devolution where residents are well centered in decision making. The Murang’a administration has done a lot in the ECDE sector, health, agriculture and also in digitizing various services. Other counties can emulate some of these advancements,” added Wambua.
By Bernard Munyao & Purity Mugo
