This archive report was first published on 8 July 2020.
Nyeri Governor Mutahi Kahiga has signed into law two bills presented by the County Assembly of Nyeri, marking a significant milestone in the county's efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Tuesday, July 7, 2020, Governor Kahiga assented to the Nyeri Covid-19 and Highly Infectious Disease Response Bill, 2020, and the Nyeri county appropriations Bill, 2020, in the presence of the Speaker of the County Assembly, John Kaguchia, and health committee members.
The two bills will guide the county government in responding to outbreaks of infectious diseases and expenditure of the 2020/2021 financial year budget, respectively.
Speaking at his office, Governor Kahiga hailed the health committee for being the first in the country to come up with such a bill, saying it will not only give directions on how to deal with the current pandemic, but also any future outbreaks of infectious diseases.
He also thanked the two committees for timely presentation and for collaborating with the executive in the drafting of the bill.
Furthermore, Governor Kahiga called on the Senate to uphold the contested third generation revenue sharing formula, which seeks to allocate money to counties based on population size but not land mass.
He emphasized that the COVID-19 and highly infectious diseases response bill gives the governor power to hire temporary staff when the need arises and also helps the county to be more coordinated in its response to pandemics.
Speaker Kaguchia echoed Governor Kahiga's sentiments, saying that the formula should be upheld to enable proper service to Kenyans.
