We had occasion to meet the cabinet secretary responsible for finance but of course, we were not satisfied with his response.
The national treasury using the position that it has found itself is an appendage of the national government, which is the problem.
So when it comes to availing money for public use, it gives preference to national functions as opposed to county functions.
I think we need to look really look at the constitution and make the cabinet secretary responsible for finance, a cabinet secretary responsible for both governments.
So that the cabinet secretary is not just responsible for the national government, but responsible for both the national and County governments, because in that office, repossessed funds that are supposed be disbursed to counties, in a timely way.
There was an attempt to cure this by having the office of the controller of budget for that office has nothing to do with disbursement.
That office looks at administrative matters instead of being responsible for the timely disbursement of funds as approved in the budget to both levels of government.
So that is one problem. The second problem is at the advent of devolution when we first rolled it out, the national assembly which was in existence before the senate decided to allocate, to give itself the responsibility for financial matters, a fight that is still ongoing before court.
So when it comes to financial matters, financial legislation and such related matters, the national assembly has been arrogated upon itself more responsibility than the constitution conferred on it.
Therefore, when pull and push arise between the senate and the national assembly, and because the presidency has been more inclined towards favoring the national assembly, the senate, which is the protector and representative of counties, if you look at article 96 of the Constitution, has been disadvantaged.
And all these matters, go to court and they drag. So when it comes to dealing with finances, when you combine the inclination of the presidency, national assembly, the counties are disadvantaged because the senate that is supposed to be the anchor has not been re-engineered in the constitution or sorted out of my way of BBI, which is still under discussion elsewhere.
