The Council of Governors (CoG) has ordered the suspension of all non essential County services, as the Counties’ shutdown slated for Thursday 17th September looms. This is due to the fact that Senate has for the 10th time failed to agree on the revenue allocation formula, with the Third generation formula dividing opinions and allegiances in the Senate. As a result of this, County operations have stalled due to a lack of funds for a long time, with County staff going months without pay and projects hitting a wall.
The formula, which prioritizes population as the key guide in allocating funds, has met opposition from Counties that are set to lose hefty amounts of money, mostly the North Eastern and Coastal Counties. On Tuesday, President Uhuru Kenyatta met the CoG leadership at State House and he said an additional Kshs 50 billion will be released in the next financial year to cushion Counties, however, the formula hasn’t been agreed upon by Senators yet.
In a statement on Wednesday, CoG chairperson Wycliffe Oparanya said all non essential services are hereby suspended and County employees are advised to proceed on leave for two weeks. Health services have also been affected, “County Health services will not permit any inpatient admissions. They will only provide minimal outpatient services,” he said.