Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 800407,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/800407/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 227,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Public Service Board, who is also the Chairperson of all the County Public Service Boards whenever they come together. Madam Temporary Speaker, majority of the stakeholders noted that the Bill captures the spirit and intention of establishing a county pension scheme. It adopts the recommendations of the inter Agency Technical Committee which they all sat in a few years ago. It advised on the way forward on the management of county pensions and in particular embraces the establishment of a new pensions scheme, closing the existing ones and beginning afresh with an independent scheme without liabilities. That is what they felt. The main issue of concern they raised were: one, administration of the scheme. Most were of the view-and the Committee agrees-that the scheme should be administered by an internal administrator like other schemes in the country such as the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) and the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), for accountability and transparency. Some stakeholders preferred a corporate manager since that is the arrangement they are in currently. The Committee, however, noted that the scheme would be best administered by an internal administrator so that we can account for every shilling that they receive on behalf of pensioners. There is a percentage that is given for administration. Once that percentage is given, if they use less, it is profit to that external private company. However, if it is internal, it remains as part of the pensioners’ money. We felt that administration costs cannot be just a percentage of the entire amount in the scheme because there are certain costs that are identifiable immediately. If today, the scheme becomes Kshs200 billion, it does not follow that the administration costs also grow proportionately. If we needed “x” number of staff, we probably would still need a similar number with only a marginal increase. Madam Temporary Speaker, on co-mingling of assets and liabilities of the cross schemes, some stakeholders wanted a definitive way of dealing with that. To deal with that uncertainty, we will propose amendments at the Committee stage; that:- “The Auditor General shall cause an actuarial audit and valuation of all these schemes at the commencement of the Act to ascertain the assets acquired, liabilities accrued and employees of the schemes. That report shall be submitted to the Senate to consider and approve appropriate action.” The Bill will transition all county governments’ employees, former local authorities and the national Government employees under the scheme and will be open to everybody else. As I move to finish, I thank all those Kenyans and private individuals who came for public participation. It is a core part of our Constitution and of being a Kenyan that you have come and participated in the lawmaking function of this House. I thank the institutions that came and note that in as much as this has previously been such a dicey and divisive affair, we can see light at the end of the tunnel. All the stakeholders we have spoken to are beginning to appreciate and understand that at the end of the day, we must have this umbrella pension scheme. Not everybody will get 100 per cent. In any negotiation whether about a border between Pokots- led by Sen. Poghisio and Turkanas; between a parent and a child, or at the United The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}