Deputy President William Ruto has said that the revenue sharing formula proposals by Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja and his Meru counterpart Franklin Mithika Linturi will help the country achieve a win-win outcome.
Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen, an ardent supporter of the DP, said on Friday that Linturi and Sakaja had agreed to merge their proposals in a bid to seek broad-based support for a win-win revenue sharing matrix.
In a tweet on Friday evening, the DP acknowledged that the consensus between the two leaders will help end the revenue stalemate.
“The emerging consensus on the revenue formula(Sakaja/Linturi) where populous counties receive reasonable increase while the others make major savings from otherwise huge loses is a big stride in pursuit of a win-win outcome. A united and patriotic senate will deliver the solution, ” Ruto wrote.
The emerging CONSENSUS on the revenue formula(Sakaja/Linturi) where populous counties receive REASONABLE increase while the others make MAJOR SAVINGS from otherwise huge loses is a big stride in pursuit of a WIN-WIN outcome.A UNITED and PATRIOTIC senate will DELIVER the SOLUTION.
— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) August 7, 2020
The DP had last week indicated that the debate on the revenue sharing formula is “unnecessarily divisive”.
Read: The Ongoing Revenue Formula Debate is Unnecessarily Divisive – DP William Ruto
The second in command called on Parliament to work on a win-win formula that will not hurt any county.
Murkomen and senators under the ‘Kenya Moja‘ axis comprising among others Senators Mutula Kilonzo (Makueni) and Ledama ole Kina (Narok) are opposed to state a population-driven revenue sharing formula fronted by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The lawmakers argue that “poor” counties, especially in the North-Eastern region, are losing funds. Some counties like Murkomen’s Elgeyo Marakwet are gaining funds in the formula.
Sakaja proposed an amendment to the Finance Committee’s formula seeking to use allocation to each county in the last financial year as a baseline for present and future share of the county share, and any increased resources be subject to a new formula.
Read Also: Raila Supports Population-driven Revenue Sharing Formula, Tells Senators To End Stand-off
Under the Sakaja and Linturi new proposal, the amount shared to counties shall range between Ksh250 billion and Ksh270 billion.
“The exact amount shall be agreed upon once negotiation are completed,” Murkomen said on Friday.
The balance from the available Ksh316 billion shareable revenue will then be distributed among counties based on an amendment tabled by Sakaja in the Senate.
Read Also: Intimidation? Jubilee To Crack Whip On Senators Who Defied Uhuru On Revenue Vote
The former majority leader said that Sakaja and Linturi had been tasked to work together and produce a document by August 10 ahead of debate to pass the final version of the amendment slated for Tuesday, August 11.
The Senate on Tuesday afternoon voted to adjourn the debate on the revenue sharing formula during their seventh sitting on the matter after Murkomen asked for more time for senators to deliberate and find a long-lasting solution.
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