MP calls Governors greedy over the control of CDF kitty

Governors and Members of Parliament are likely to be embroiled in a war of words after the Laikipia East Member of Parliament termed them (Governors) as greedy and selfish.

Anthony Mutahi, the Laikipia East MP who took over from Mwangi Kiujuri, has accused the Governors of propagating selfish agenda ignoring the development needs of their respective counties.

Mutahi, who is a relatively new entrant into the Governors vs MPs wars, was speaking at the end of the week in Nanyuki after inspecting various Constituency Development Fund (CDF) funded projects.

He said Governors are not ready and have not proven than they can be entrusted to manage the CDF kitty – which the High Court early this year ruled as unconstitutional.

Mutahi, a first timer in Parliament, said the CDF kitty has changed many lives and the idea to have it managed by the Governors was misplaced.

He said the Governors have been allocated millions of shillings which they have not been able to manage effectively and therefore the idea to give them the mandate to manage CDF was ill-thought.

He warned the county bosses to focus their ‘selfish egos’ somewhere else and stop interfering with CDF adding that legislators are ready to do what it takes to defend the kitty.

His sentiments comes almost two months after the Siaya Governor Cornel Rasanga renewed calls on the need to channel CDF funds through the county governments to avoid duplication of projects.

The Governor argued that this would help in ensuring proper coordination and implementation of development projects such as maintenance of roads within the counties.

Governor Rasanga said as things stand, there is confusion as both county government and CDF management committees may end up contracting different people to do the same job.

In February this year, High Court Judges Isaac Lenaola, David Majanja and Mumbi Ngugi declared the CDF illegal and gave the national government 12 months to align it with the Constitution.

The Judges said the law setting up the fund was faulty and that the Constitution had been violated by failure to involve the Senate when the law was amended two years ago.

The judges called on lawmakers to correct the defective legislation within 12 months meaning that the money set aside this year for the fund should not be given out until the law is amended.

Late February, 40 MPs, led by CDF Committee chairman Moses Lesonet of Eldama Ravine said they would change the CDF Act 2013 even as they appealed the High Court ruling.