This archive report was first published on 20 December 2019.
Good governance is about prudence in the use of cash and honouring contracts to facilitate service delivery. Unfortunately, counties in Kenya have miserably failed on this front.
They have consistently argued that they cannot pay bills due to lack of funds, often citing delays by the National Treasury in releasing cash. While there is some truth to this, the reality is that counties simply do not pay, regardless of whether they have cash or not.
According to a report, pending bills have a history dating back to 2013, when counties inherited financial liabilities from the defunct local authorities. Despite being duty-bound to sort them out, counties created unsustainable structures and bloated workforces, but failed to deliver commensurate services.
Today, counties are accused of gobbled up capitation from the national government through meaningless expenditure, with funds lost through corruption, pilferage, and wastefulness. The consequence is that counties have become a bottomless pit.
Three governors are currently on suspension as they face corruption charges, which is an indictment on the devolved units. Furthermore, new governors who came to power in 2017 have trashed and refused to pay bills or continue with projects initiated by their predecessors, a perverted thinking that is counter-intuitive to the role of governors.
Given this backdrop, the national government has threatened to sue governors who fail to pay bills, a situation that is both shameful and inevitable. Many people are facing financial distress due to the counties' failure to pay their bills, and it is high time that counties start honouring their commitments.
