Silent rebellion in UDA as MCAs push for higher pay

Other county assemblies in which sittings were adjourned indefinitely include Narok, Mandera, Kericho, Tana River, Embu, Kisii, Marsabit, Makueni, Wajir, Garissa, Laikipia, Kajiado, Samburu, Nyamira, West Pokot, Mombasa and Kwale.

County lawmakers in other units have threatened to boycott plenary sittings until their pay demands are addressed, a move that has run afoul with Malala, who, as recently as Friday, asserted that UDA MCAs would not be part of the protest.

"We had given directions to the county assemblies that we control. I believe that no leader of majority will go against the word of the SG. But if there is a rogue one, we will deal with them internally," he said after meeting UDA MCAs that was aimed to cool them down.

"The issue of the welfare of MCAs is not a party affair," Naivasha East MCA Stanley Karanja, the secretary-general of the association of MCAs, said.

Malala eventually bowed to pressure and committed to write to the Salaries and Remuneration Commission to lobby for their pay demands.

The MCAs are pushing for a pay rise among other emoluments, such as the reinstatement of a Sh2 million car grant and sitting and mileage allowances and are also seeking a ward development fund and an affirmative action fund for nominated MCAs.

They also want the 30 per cent tax levied on their car reimbursement fund scrapped.

Over the last few weeks, the MCAs have been up in arms mostly because of pay demands.

Many have opposed an offer by the Salaries and the Remuneration Commission that would see their pay increase by Sh10,000 in the first phase, which is to be implemented in the 2023/2024 financial year.

The MCAs, who currently earn a gross pay of Sh144,375, could earn Sh154,481 in the next financial year, with the amount rising to Sh164,588 in the 2024/2025 financial year.

SRC's proposals will see speakers of county assemblies earn Sh562,312 as their gross income in the next financial year and make Sh601,674 in the 2024/2025 calendar. They currently earn a gross salary of Sh525,525.

Deputy speakers who currently earn Sh216,563 will see their gross pay jump to an initial Sh231,722 and subsequently to Sh247,943.

Majority leaders

Majority and Minority leaders currently earning Sh144,375 will have their pay increased to Sh191,324 in the first phase and later Sh204,717.

The offer was presented to the County Assemblies Forum (CAF). But the lawmakers want the pay increased to Sh390,270 per month, an increase that is 40 per cent of a governor's gross salary.

Kileleshwa MCA Robert Alai argued that it makes no sense for the salary of an MCA to go up by Sh10,000 while that of a speaker is raised by Sh75,000.

"Since the start of devolution, the salary of an MCA has always been around Sh200,000, with that of a speaker within that range. But they have reduced an MCA's basic salary to Sh86,000 and increased the speaker's to more than Sh500,000," Alai said, even as he argued that the MCAs' issues were bigger than their pay.

In November last year, CAF was pushing for MCAs to earn about Sh400,000 after MPs protested SRC's decision to slash their basic pay from Sh532,500 to Sh426,000 despite their gross salary getting a slight raise.

"Our salary is not our immediate concern. We are seeking to strengthen devolution and make it work better," Alai added, stating the need to separate county assembly accounts from the Executive's to stem intimidation and make oversight work better.