Turkana Governor Josephat Nanok on Thursday blamed President Uhuru Kenyatta for the ongoing battle between governors and National Assembly over Division of Revenue Bill, 2019.
Governors moved to the Supreme Court early this week, challenging allocations of Sh310 billion for Devolution, against CRA's recommendation of Sh335 billion.
According to Nanok, Uhuru should solve the crisis because he assented to the bill without following proper procedures.
“President Uhuru unprocedurally approved the Budget and Appropriations Act, 2019 before the Division of Revenue Bill, 2019 is enacted into law as required by the Constitution,” he argued.
“The additional funds we are demanding as governors and recommended by CRA is a small amount out of a huge Sh3.02 trillion national budget. I believe it is a small sacrifice for the rural communities of Kenya who are far from the centre and whose access to government services is heavily reliant on the smooth running of the devolved units,” Governor Nanok said.
Justice David Maraga is set to constitute a bench which shall look into the matter soon. Governors have accused MPs of plotting to derail projects in counties.
On Thursday, Senators also moved to court accusing MPs of handling at least 24 legislations without following due process. Divisions of Revenue Bill 2019 is one of them.
"The Senate is an important institution with legislative budget making a role in the country... there's an enactment of laws which require its input while there are more others in the pipeline that deals with counties, yet they have been left out. It is our view that the court sets it out clear that bills relating to county governments must be in accordance with the law," said Senator James Orengo.
Justice Weldon Korir also referred the matter as urgent to Chief Justice David Maraga, who is now expected to form a three-judge bench to handle the case.