Governors have threatened a complete shutdown of county services if delays in disbursing equitable revenue persist beyond November.
Council of Governors (CoG) chairperson Ahmed Abdullahi revealed that counties have yet to receive their allocations five months into the 2024/25 financial year, despite the County Allocation of Revenue Bill being passed by Parliament.
Counties are currently relying on 50% of their revenue share as a stopgap measure, but Abdullahi warned this approach is unsustainable. He criticized delays by the Controller of Budget in approving fund requisitions and termed it an attack on devolution.
“We therefore call upon the Senate to expeditiously pass the County Allocation of Revenue Act to resolve this delay. Additionally, we demand that the National Treasury immediately releases the funds owed to counties, failure to which, county governments will have no choice but to shut down operations completely.”
“The National Treasury is yet to disburse Sh63.6 billion for October and November, 2024 allocations. However, by December 2024, the 50 per cent will have been exhausted which means counties will not receive any disbursement from January 2025,” Abdullahi said.
Governors also objected to the Supplementary Appropriations Act, 2024, citing procedural flaws and a Supreme Court advisory barring appropriation bills before finalizing the Division of Revenue Bill.
“The Act is based on figures contained in a Bill that is currently before the mediation committee of Parliament,” he said.
As Parliament debates the Division of Revenue Bill, the CoG has cautioned against reducing the counties’ Sh400.117 billion share, saying it would cripple service delivery.