Governors have slammed the Office of the Controller of Budget (CoB) over what they term a deliberate attempt to frustrate cash flow in counties and called on senators to defend devolution.

Speaking during the funeral service of Vihiga County Secretary Ezekiel Ayieko in Idaho South Ward, Shinyalu constituency, Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa and his Vihiga counterpart Dr Wilbur Ottichilo blamed Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang’o for the delayed approval of county funds and accused her of alleged attempt to gag governors from voicing their concerns on the matter.

“Three days ago, I asked the COB to change the approval of requests but I was told the request from Kakamega county will not be approved because I have been on the frontline,” claimed Barasa. 

The Kakamega governor who is also the Council of Governors Chair of Finance and Economic Planning said delayed disbursement is caused by long approval process at the CoB.
“We shouldn’t have our Chief Officers persistently travel to Nairobi for that process yet all the 47 counties have a Controller of Budget coordinator who looks at those requests before they come to Nairobi,” he said. 

"There's a systematic attempt to frustrate devolution. Senators, you have an opportunity to save devolution, counties depend on you. We have held mediation talks, and MPs and senators have an opportunity in Parliament to defend devolution. Health, agriculture, and construction of markets are devolved functions and must be transferred to counties," Barasa said.

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  Governors want treasury to release Sh100b to counties

He urged the CoB to automate the approval process so that the officers upload the requests on a website to ensure timely release of funds saying that the persistent delays in disbursement of funds will result in slow absorption of monies towards the transition to a new financial year. 

The Vihiga governor thanked senators for supporting the Sh400 billion allocation to counties even though the proposal was shot down.

Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka said the country is in a mess and Kenyans need a stable economy.

"We respect our President William Ruto but he should stop lying to Kenyans, it's during his tenure that we have borrowed Sh7 trillion. People need food, jobs, and a stable economy. County governments are getting 15 per cent and the national government gets 85 per cent and you want them to develop. We must believe we are going to manage our country if there's fairness and equity in funds distribution," said Onyonka. 

Emuhaya MP Omboko Milemba said there's a need to protect counties by demanding timely disbursement of funds by the national government.

Mumias East MP Peter Salaysa accused President Ruto of seeking to control Parliament which is supposed to oversight the Executive.

"You cannot be executive and again you oversight. We need to go back to the drawing board, MPs must be independent in order for them to play their oversight role," said Salasya.

The CoG and COB clashed following revelation by the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi that the exchequer had released all monies owed to counties.

However, counties are yet to receive the funds because the process takes two weeks from the Central Bank CRF account to counties’ accounts.

In an update on Monday, November 18, the Ministry of Treasury and Economic Planning said it had fully disbursed the funds to counties except for November.

"A total of Sh158,024,092,590.00 has been disbursed so far for the months of June (arrears), July, August, September, and October. So far, all payments except for the current month of November have been settled," the Ministry said.

According to documents seen by The Standard, the Ministry disbursed Sh30.8 billion in June and Sh32.7 billion in July, Sh30.8 billion and Sh32.7 billion in August and September respectively.By Jackline Inyanji and Benard Lusigi, The Standard

KHARTOUM, Sudan

The Sudanese army announced on Saturday that it had regained control of Sinja, the capital of the southeastern Sennar State, from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

In a brief statement, the army stated that "Sinja city has been restored from the grip of the RSF."

The army shared videos showing soldiers inside the headquarters of the 17th Infantry Division in Sinja. The footage also depicted celebrations by residents of Sinja following the army's recapture of the city.

The RSF has not issued any statement on the army's announcement.

On June 24, the RSF launched an offensive in Sennar State, capturing several towns, including Sinja, which they entered on June 29.

Recently, the Sudanese army has made significant advances in Sennar, regaining control of strategic locations such as Jebel Moya and towns like As-Suki and Ad-Dinder.

Since mid-April last year, the Sudanese army and the RSF have been engaged in a conflict that has resulted in more than 20,000 deaths and displaced nearly 10 million people, according to the UN.

There have been growing calls from the UN and international bodies to end the conflict, as the war has pushed millions of Sudanese to the brink of famine and death due to food shortages, with the fighting spreading to 13 of Sudan's 18 states. *Writing by Ikram Kouachi, AA

Environment Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale. [Standard, File]

Environment Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has explained why there has been tree cutting in Karura Forest. In a statement on Saturday, November 23, Duale clarified that the removal of Eucalyptus trees is part of a long-term forest conversion plan, which involves replacing these exotic trees with indigenous species.

The initiative, he said, is guided by the Forest Conservation and Management Act of 2016 and aims to restore the forest to its natural state.
Duale's comments followed an online uproar after Kenyans shared videos of Kenya Forest Service (KFS) rangers cutting down trees in the forest and loading logs onto lorries.

Speculation online suggested the deforestation was part of a plot to grab Karura land or develop infrastructure.

He explained that the current activity is in line with the Karura Forest Participatory Forest Management Plan (PFMP), developed with input from a range of stakeholders.
The plan envisions a phased transformation of the forest, including the removal of non-native species and the eventual replacement of Eucalyptus trees with indigenous varieties.

“The forest is being managed in accordance with the provisions of the Forest Conservation and Management Act of 2016,” said Duale. 
“The current activities align with the forest management plan, which aims to restore the forest ecosystem to its indigenous state.”

The conversion process also involves licensed timber industry investors who are clearing the Eucalyptus trees through a procurement process outlined by the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act of 2015.
Duale stressed that the decision to cut down the trees was made in accordance with the law and was not intended to facilitate any land grab or development.

He urged the public to focus on the forest’s long-term conservation goals instead of isolated footage circulating online.

“The various video footage and reactions do not represent the actual reality of the Karura Forest conservation efforts,” he added. By David Njaaga, The Standard