President Uhuru Kenyatta and NASA Coalition leader Raila Odinga have in unison rejected a move by MPs to block new pay structure as gazetted by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.
Yesterday, the President spoke tough on MPs push to block SRC from implementing the new pay structure which will have them receive sh621, 000 up from sh710, 000.
He said he will not be part of their “greed”.
“I am greatly disturbed by the statements from individuals who wish to claim that they should be paid more and will demand more what the law provides even before they have been sworn in,” he said.
Uhuru maintained he will not sign the bill into law as it will be watering down efforts by SRC to lower the country’s wage bill.
“I am stating now even as I wait for the Supreme Court to rule on my election, if it rules on my favour, I swear, I shall not sign that law.”
NASA through Co-principal Musalia Mudavadi in a statement said their members agitating for higher pay are speaking as individuals and not as representative of the party.
“NASA wishes to debunk the notion that the MPs-elect are speaking as collective representatives of political parties or as members of the NASA coalition.
They are speaking as affected individuals and they have every right to do so,” he said.
Homa Bay Women Representative Gladys Wanga and a member of Parliamentary Public Service Commission started the debate on Wednesday.
She said SRC was on mission to reduce MPs to beggars.
Kiambu County Women Rep-elect Gathoni Wamuchomba also agitated for better pay.
But this has put her at logger heads with her Kiambu backyard voters who have since started collecting signatures to remove her from office ahead of Thursday’s swearing-in.
Gathoni has since apologized.
The MPs, a majority of them support retaining their old salaries and allowances which have since been scrapped.
They said their resolve to undo Serem’s new pay structure remains unwavered.
“We have all the machinery at our disposal including blocking the approval of Cabinet Secretaries, Principal Officers and other key appointments,” remarked Alego Usonga MP-elect Samuel Standi as quoted by Daily Nation.
By Pharis Kinyua. He’s an online journalist and an author for Jamhuri News