Counties

Push for NMS to take over payment of Sh3.6bn pending bills

nms

Major General Mohammed Badi. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Nairobi ward representatives want Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) to take over payment of pending bills at the county government.

This comes after the MCAs raised concerns over non-payments despite the assembly approving a Sh3.6 billion supplementary budget to settle the supplier and contractors’ dues.

The MCAs complained that only lawyers are paid hundreds of millions of shillings, yet small scale suppliers are left behind.

Consequently, they called on the Major General Mohammed Badi-led office to take over all pending bills with immediate effect for scrutiny and settlement.

Ziwani MCA Millicent Mugadi called on President Uhuru Kenyatta to direct that the pending bills are taken to the National Government for settlement.

“We are asking the government to intervene. How on earth do we owe someone Sh9,000 since 2009? If they (county government) cannot pay, then let the pending bills be also transferred to the NMS,” said Ms Mugadi.

Kayole Central MCA Jeremiah Themendu echoed his counterpart’s sentiments saying, “We have about 1,400 youth who fixed the drainage, which is the reason why we didn’t have floods yet they have not been paid even a single cent for eight months.”

Nominated MCA June Ndegwa faulted the county government for not prioritising payments to small scale traders, especially women, youth and disabled persons despite a National Treasury directive fast-tracking of bills for those owed not more Sh5 million.

She pointed out that it will only take about Sh650 million to pay about 600 small scale traders that fall in this category.

“It is such a sad affair that we as the Nairobi County have a pending bill from 2009, that we owe a supplier Sh9, 200. That is a youth in the city that has not been paid, but we have the audacity to pay a lawyer Sh80 million who worked in 2015,” said Ms Ndegwa.

Minority Whip Peter Imwatok pointed out that the Auditor- General’s report on pending bills has more than 1,000 people with about 493 being small scale traders owed between Sh70,000 and Sh3 million.

“Lawyers are finishing the county government of Nairobi. Just simply because if you are paid Sh100 million you take Sh70 million. It is a syndicate which has to be broken,” said the Makongeni MCA.

Speaker Beatrice Elachi directed that the leadership of the House together with the chairman and vice chair of the Budget committee put together all the small pending bills based on the report from the Auditor-General to be later presented to NMS.