Taita Taveta allocates Sh200m to clear pending bills

Taita Taveta County Government allocated a paltry Sh200 million to clear pending bills despite owing Sh1.4 billion to contractors and suppliers.

The allocation attracted backlash from suppliers and contractors as questions arise over the county administration's commitment to clear pending bills accrued since 2013.

One of the contractors, Jefferson Mwabili, described the allocation as a drop in the ocean.

“We are not getting the services we deserve due to bureaucracy in government. The current allocation is like a drop in the ocean, and we do not know who to turn to now,” Mwabili said.

The contractor accused the Budget and Appropriation Committee of slashing the executive budget.

“The governor wants to clear all the pending bills before implementing new projects but was pressurized by the MCAs to initiate new projects at the expense of clearing pending bills accrued since 2013. This has forced us to continue deferring pending bills in every financial year,” said one of the top county officials

Finance and Planning Executive Mzenge Katuu disclosed that they would not clear all the accumulated bills due to budgetary constraints.

Katuu said if they clear all pending bills other government operations and delivery of quality services will be affected.

“We are committed to clearing the pending bills but it is difficult and very tricky to strike a balance,” the Finance and Planning Executive said.

Katuu concurred with the contractors and suppliers that the Sh200 million allocated to clear pending bills was not enough.

“We are asking contractors and suppliers to bear with us for the time being, and we will pay them in peace meal with the little resources we have. Out of Sh200 million, Sh 20 million will go to the National Housing Corporation (NHC) to clear an outstanding bill accrued by successive governments for the Mbela Estate, and the remaining Sh180 million will be paid to suppliers and contractors,” said the Finance and Planning Executive.

A fortnight ago, the County Assembly endorsed a Sh8.3 billion budget, with recurrent expenditure getting the lion’s share of 67.4 per cent of the allocations.

Contributing to the County Appropriation Bill, 2024, members of the county assembly decried the ballooning wage bill, which currently stands at 53 per cent above the recommended ceiling of 35 per cent.

The MCAs also criticized the executive over stalled development projects and the low absorption rate of development funds in last year’s budget. More than Sh2.7 billion has been allocated for development in this year’s budget.

Assembly acting Speaker Anselim Mwadime said the low absorption rate in development has impacted negatively on the socio-economic status of the community.

“We have passed the budget estimates and Appropriation Bill, and we are giving the executive one month to start the projects, failure to which, heads will roll. We want a 100 per cent absorption rate in development projects,” said Mwadime.

“We have been listening to what the ground is saying, and we will become the major casualties in the next polls because voters are hungry with us. And before we lose our seats in 2027, heads will roll first. I am not ready to be taken home by the voters,” he warned.

The Mgange-Mwanda ward representative, noted that the low absorption rate has been happening despite the county receiving its full amount of equitable share of revenue from the National Treasury.

“There is a high level of incompetence and hypocrisy among some executives. We will change our standing orders to ensure that the executive directly responds to our questions in the House,” said deputy Minority Leader Amos Makalo.