Things are expected to get heated up today as the senate meets for the revenue-sharing debate today. All eyes will be on the voting patterns from across the political divide among supporters of President Kenyatta, Mr. Odinga, and Deputy President William Ruto.
Most senators want no county to lose a single cent in the new revenue sharing formula developed by the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA).
Sources say senators who are allied to Mr. Odinga and Mr. Kenyatta are being whipped to back a compromise formula fronted by Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja in what might break the deadlock that has become the Uhuru-Raila handshake’s biggest test yet.
At least 30 senators are in support of the motion by the Nairobi senator that seeks to ensure no county gets reduced allocation based on the third formula that will see regions that have been receiving a higher allocation because of their huge landmass and high poverty indices, get less.
as expected, Senators backing the third basis revenue sharing formula are those from the counties that will be gain as those from counties that will lose, reject it.
Sakaja says his proposal has two components where each county will get Sh316.5 billion. The equitable share will then form a baseline for additional allocation during the three years that revenue generation formula will be in place.
ODM leader Raila Odinga has urged senators to adopt the report by CRA on the sharing of money from the national government to counties in order to end the current stalemate.
Mr. Odinga said that under the current circumstances, the recommendation on revenue sharing by CRA should be adopted for the next five years, saying this will ensure Kenyans are “better served”.
“The Senate made certain amendments to the CRA recommendation but equally retained the central principle that allocation must be about the population. Unfortunately, the institution has disagreed on its own amendments,” said the ODM leader.
