Time to spend wisely and plug budget hole

 National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani’s pleadings to County governments to spend what they have before asking for more in these harsh Covid-19 times confirms that the country needs to tighten its collective belt and spend wisely if it is to survive these harsh times.  But, while his pleas are welcome, it is not clear yet what strategy the government is seeking to adopt to pull itself out of the rut.

The first step is to enforce strict controls on expenditures and rein in on wastages. A major factor contributing to the cash crunch is corruption and pilferage. Independent estimates show that up to 30 per cent of national resources are lost through corruption and mismanagement. This must be stopped. Further, any new expenditure must be justified.

Second, examine and rationalise the composition of the government and public sector labour force. The current set up is top-heavy, bloated and unsustainable. This is likely to get worse if the proposals in the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI), which seek to expand the Executive, are ratified.

Equally, we need to review the model of funding counties. Constitutionally, the national government is required to allocate at least 15 per cent of audited annual earnings to the counties.

This funding has not been forthcoming because of the financial squeeze. However, this does not mean that counties should rely on the national government; they have to generate own incomes to keep afloat.

The task ahead is recovery and that obligates Mr Yatani and his team to articulate the measures they want to roll out to revitalise the economy.