Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru did not appear before a Senate committee that was looking for answers over a Ksh65.7 billion pension fund.
The Senate Committee on County Public Investments and Special Funds, chaired by Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi, called the Chairperson of the Council of Governors (CoG).
Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u and Controller of Budget Nancy Gathungu also failed to appear before the Senate to answer questions about the monies.
Members of the committee contended that money for pensions had been withdrawn from employees from several counties, but the monies had yet to be distributed.
Kirinyaga County in Waiguru was also accused of failing to transfer funds to the Local Authorities Pensions Trust (LAPTRUST) and the Local Authorities Provident Fund (LAPFUND).
Similar occurrences have been reported in other counties, with Nairobi reportedly incurring the most debt.
They claimed that the national and county governments had placed seniors in a vulnerable position, causing them to seek alternative means of support.
Ali Roba, secretary general of the Kenya County Government Workers Union (KCGWU), called on the committee to settle the problem last month.
Roba contended that the pension obligations arose as a result of the start of devolution and insufficient regulation and enforcement.
Roba advocated for a revision to the County Governments Act to make officeholders accountable for the non-remittance of pension payments.
“The workers’ savings could be lost if the problem is not resolved quickly,” he bemoaned.
President William Ruto charged all public institutions with putting in place mechanisms to ensure that all outstanding pension commitments are paid in full within two years.
He bemoaned the fact that institutions collected money from contributors but did not remit it to pension schemes or SACCOs.
