MCAs win big allowances in salary deal

Salary and Remuneration Commission chairperson Sarah Serem (left) and Mr Joseph Makilap the chairman of negotiating team and Baringo County Assembly Majority Leader at the SRC’S headquarters in Nairobi, yesterday. [PHOTO: PIUS CHERUIYOT/STANDARD]

By ROSELYNE OBALA

After more than two months of boycott over salaries, Members of the Country Assemblies and Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) have hammered a deal.

The adjournment of County Assemblies’ sittings by MCAs to demand better terms of service has finally paid off.

Yesterday’s agreement was however arrived at in the absence of the County Assemblies Speakers’ Forum representatives following four days of intense deliberations.

In the deal, MCAs will get a gross salary of Sh79,200 and facilitation perks that has taken into account constrains they face in discharging their duties.

The commission announced that mileage, sitting allowances, special assembly duty allowance, car loan and mortgage was part of the facilitation perks they agreed on.

SRC chairperson Sarah Serem revealed that in order to enable MCAs undertake their legislative and representative roles, the mileage allowance has increased from Sh20,000 to Sh39,528.

Mileage

“All MCAs will be considered for the mileage allowance of Sh39,528 computed,” she said.

She added, “Sh109.8 is the mileage allowance rate for vehicles rating 2000cc to 3000cc as this takes cognizance of the 52 weeks in a calendar year and caters for fuel and car maintenances.”

The MCAs’ whose area of representation is beyond the 45km return journey, will be allowed to claim an extra mileage at application AA rates. The County ward representatives will be entitled to a car loan of a maximum of Sh2 million at three percent interest, payable within a five-year period in office or before end of term.

Serem announced that the sitting allowance for MCAs who serve in committees will be as follows; chairmen Sh6,500 per sitting up from Sh5000 per day’s sitting and a maximum of eight sittings per committee in a week.

“Vice chair will be paid Sh5,200 per committee subject to a maximum of two paid meetings per day and a maximum of eight committee sittings per week,” she stated.

The chairperson noted that the members sitting allowances has been increased to Sh3,900 up from Sh3,000 per committee, subject to a maximum of two paid meetings a day and a maximum of eight committee sittings a week.

“Mortgage will be considered by individual counties subject to the respective County government’s availability of funds, but they will be allowed to take a maximum of Sh2 million,” she explained.

The MCAs scored on allowances after SRC agreed to consider a presentation made by the National Governing Council members on their expectations of the Salary review in line with their job description

“The current minimum remuneration package for an MCA is Sh185,200 while the highest is more than Sh217,000 if they do the maximum eight sittings per week,” noted Serem.

MCAs representatives comprising, Majority and Minority leaders and Deputy Speakers from the 47 counties led the talks that culminated in the agreement.

Job re-evaluation

The initial point of departure between MCAs with SRC was the fact that (MCAs) were not ready for a job re-evaluation and instead demanded a salary review.

The negotiation team’s chairman Joseph Makilap indicated that they had decided to form a deliberation taskforce to engage SRC and end the strike.

“It has taken the Speakers forum over eight months to address this matter. We took our own initiative to fight for our rights,” noted Makilap who is also the Baringo County Majority leader.

The deal will see MCAs resume County sessions, while they wait the salary review. “Majority leaders will re-convene sessions as per our standing orders,” he directed, arguing that Speakers will have to allow the sittings to resume.

Nyamira County Majority leader Beauttah Omanga welcomed the new packages but stressed that MCAs should wait for one week to resolve the salaries impasse before they resume sitting.

“MCAs with loans already will not be able to service them with a salary of Sh79,200, but if SRC raises the amount to Sh275,000 or Sh322,000 it will be sufficient to engage the benefits announced,” he noted.

He advised, “A week is very short period, we rather wait and resume full time after the final review of salaries.” Serem while acknowledging that the process to address the salaries stalemate took a long time to resolve, she pledged that the Sh79,200 disputed by the MCAs will be reviewed in a week’s time.

“We have also agreed that Price waterhouseCoopers (Pwc) will review the job descriptions and provide a structure in order to review the salaries of MCAs,” she said.

The process to seek truce over the impasse began on Wednesday when MCAs’ met SRC at Laico hotel.