The deputy governors have urged the Senate to entrench their role in the Constitution to ensure they are adequately facilitated to discharge their mandate effectively.
They argued for the empowerment of the office of the deputy governors, insisting that the deputy governors are peers to the governors and should therefore be involved in the day-to-day general administration and oversight of county government decisions.
The county deputies, drawn from all the 47 devolved units, decried that the law, as it is, does not expressly provide for their functions, thus crippling them at the county level, yet they are also voted in with the governors in the same ballot.
Section 92 of the County Government Act states that the Deputy Governor shall deputise for the Governor in executing the Governor’s functions, and the Governor may assign the Deputy Governor any other responsibility or portfolio as a county executive member.
In a meeting with the Standing Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations in Nakuru County on Friday, 09th May, the Deputy Governors’ Caucus, led by the Chairperson, Hon. Reuben Kamuri, beseeched the senators to amend Section 32 of the County Government Act to streamline and spell out their roles and responsibilities in the Constitution.
They asked the august House to consider assigning them the mandate to chair specific programs, just like the Deputy President chairs the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC).”
The deputy governors also prayed that the Senate amend the County Governments Act to allocate 40 percent of the county governor’s budget to the office of the deputy governor to ensure that the deputy governor effectively and efficiently deputises the county bosses.
“The deputy governors are more of personal assistants to the governors. We are not involved in the running of the counties,” Hon. Kamuri, the deputy governor for Laikipia County, decried.
Members of the Senator Mohamed Abass-led committee sympathised with the deputy governors’ situation and expressed their resolve to amend the law to ensure the office of the deputy governors is respected.
They underscored the importance of dignifying the office of the deputy governor and ensuring the implementation of executive decisions but cautioned the county deputies to avoid conflicts with governors by establishing a clear demarcation of roles between them to ensure a functional governance system.
Senators threw the ball back to the court of the deputy governors by asking them to research and provide evidence to the Senate of other jurisdictions on the role, responsibilities, management, and budget allocation for deputy governors to help the House to amend the law.
“Research what others have done and then propose a well-researched formula for budget allocation and funding for the deputy governor’s office,” Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka suggested.
