Uhuru hosts senate leadership ahead of the revenue vote

Top senate leadership is currently meeting President Uhuru Kenyatta at State House ahead of this afternoon’s crucial vote on the disputed revenue sharing formula.

Senate Speaker Kenneth Lusaka, Majority Leader Samuel Poghisio and his minority counterpart Senator James Orengo are attending the meeting.

Senators will reconvene for a record tenth time on Tuesday to debate and vote on the contentious third basis for sharing revenue among 47 counties.

A heated showdown is expected in the house that remains divided even after Speaker Kenneth Lusaka postponed last week’s debate to create more time for building consensus.

On Monday a kamukunji failed to sit as had been ordered by the speaker to brief the senators on the position of the House leadership on to strike a deal on the formula before today’s vote.

The committee had presented two conflicting reports to the leadership led by Majority leader Samuel Poghisio  and Minority leader James Orengo.

The panel recommended to the leaders to consult President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga in efforts to build more consensus and strike a deal.

The proposal does away with fiscal prudence and fiscal efforts as parameters for sharing revenue as it recommends that Sh273 billion of the Sh316.5 billion allocated to the devolved units in the budget be shared equally.

The remaining Sh53.5 billion be subjected to the parameters. It projects that in 2021-22, the Treasury would allocate the counties Sh325 billion, Sh331 billion in 2022-23 and Sh341 billion the next financial year.

The second proposal has received the backing of ‘One-man, One-shilling’ proponents provides for 10 parameters.

The proposal gives health 20% and basic share 20%, population 16% and Agriculture 12% but will see 16 counties lose more than Sh15 billion.

‘Team Kenya’ has vowed to reject the second proposal, saying it cannot support a formula that takes away money from other counties.