Kenya: Nairobi MCAs Up in Arms Over Lack of Toilet Paper, Other Basic Amenities

Nairobi — Members of the Nairobi County Assembly (MCAs) are now lamenting over lack of basic amenities and items including toilet papers, due to financial occasioned by frozen accounts.

The stalemate came about after Clerk Edwin Gichana who was stopped by courts from serving, failed to surrender the control of the assembly accounts to Acting Clerk Adah Onyango.

In a letter addressed to Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) Governor Patrick Njoroge, Nairobi Assembly Speaker Benson Mutura asked him to intervene saying that operations at the Assembly had halted.

Mutura narrated a series of events leading to changes in the accounts office, explaining why CBK has to allow the assembly to appoint new signatories.

“We are currently unable to run our operations and are essentially stuck since we cannot pay for anything as the bank has unfairly frozen us out until Mr. Gichana physically presents himself before the bank and signs off on the Mandate Forms and surrenders his IB token,” stated Mutura.

Mutura also said that the MCAs and assembly staff are yet to be paid their January salaries, since the same cannot be processed.

Suppliers have also stopped providing services to the County Assembly on account of pending bills.

“The assembly has had essential services disconnected, such as internet services critical in carrying out virtual plenary and committee sittings,” he said.

The members said they risk being evicted from their ward offices due to rent arrears.