City Assembly moots plan to have NMS handle payment of pending bills

Nairobi County Assembly is now seeking to hand over more functions to the Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS).

MCAs want the new Mohamed Badi-led institution to take over payment of pending bills under the finance docket, citing bias, ineffectiveness and delays by the county executive in executing the task.

The county’s finance department has also been faulted for failing to ensure pending bills are cleared. This was revealed in a motion by nominated MCA June Ndegwa, which was tabled and approved last week.

The MCA was also concerned that the county executive’s finance department is yet to pay Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) despite the Covid-19 crisis that has hit businesses hard.

She said small scale traders, especially women, youth and persons with disabilities, have not been prioritised in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak to safeguard their businesses and called on NMS to intervene.

The MCA also called for a fresh scrutiny of the county’s pending bills to ensure fast and efficient payment of suppliers and contractors.

“It is outrageous that Nairobi County has a pending bill of Sh9,800 owed to a supplier and dating back to 2019," she said.