This archive report was first published on 1 August 2019.
On August 1, 2019, a financial crunch hit county governments, disrupting key operations and delaying staff salaries. The stalemate was caused by the Division of Revenue Bill 2019, which had not been passed.
Council of Governors (CoG) Chairman Wycliffe Oparanya, the Kakamega governor, asked staff in county governments to be patient as the matter was being addressed.
Speaking in Kakamega on Tuesday, Mr. Oparanya stated that county governments were looking for alternative ways to raise money and ensure their workers were paid without further delay.
"In Kakamega, we have consistently been paying our workers as early as the 22nd day of each month but this time around it is impossible. Our workers will have to wait until after probably the 6th of August before they can receive the salaries," said Mr. Oparanya.
CoG had filed a case at the Supreme Court regarding the division of revenue. The apex court had given the two Houses more time to hold talks and hopefully get into an agreement on the way forward for the Division of Revenue Bill.
County governments were unable to pay for drugs in hospitals and other key services due to the current stalemate. Governor Oparanya emphasized that the issue of how much money counties were supposed to be allocated by the national government had persisted since devolution came into being in 2013 and wanted it settled once and for all.
