High Court rules against MCAs in perks dispute with SRC
Justice Onesmus Makau ruled that the allowances were unlawful, saying MCAs are already required to attend plenary and committee sessions as part of their normal duties.
The High Court has dismissed a case by Meru County Assembly Members seeking to keep their retreat and sitting allowances, backing the Salaries and Remuneration Commission’s (SRC) decision to abolish the benefits on grounds that they amounted to double pay.
Justice Onesmus Makau ruled that the allowances were unlawful, saying MCAs are already required to attend plenary and committee sessions as part of their normal duties.
“I find that there was a basis for scrapping the said allowances and the circulars communicated the same, namely, that the allowances amounted to double compensation to the concerned officers,” Justice Makau said.
The case arose after MCAs challenged SRC circulars issued on August 7, 2023, which restructured allowances in the public service.
The directive scrapped sitting and retreat allowances for internal committees and task forces, and stopped Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) payments within a 50-kilometre radius of duty stations.
A second circular dated November 7, 2023, also placed the County Assembly Speaker at job grade E4, Deputy Speaker at E1, Majority and Minority Leaders at D5, while MCAs were classified at job grade D4, the same level as external members of the County Assembly Service Board.
The petitioners argued that SRC had unfairly lowered their job grade from 5 (equivalent to Job Group P in civil service) to D4 (equivalent to Job Group N), cutting their benefits and blocking foreign travel allowances.
They described the review as “unfair, unreasonable, unjustified, oppressive, unlawful and manifestly unconstitutional,” saying it undermined their constitutional role of representation, legislation, and oversight under Article 185.
They also accused the commission of breaching Articles 10, 27 and 47 of the Constitution, and weakening devolution under Article 73 by altering their terms midway through their tenure, while sparing similar positions in other state offices.
In its defence, SRC stated that MCAs have always been graded at D4 across all cycles of review and had never been placed at D5.
The commission explained that a 2014 circular had only harmonised DSA rates, which entitled MCAs to Sh14,000, the same as other state officers in higher job groups, after correcting an earlier allocation of Sh11,200 meant for lower grades.
SRC added that DSA is a facilitative allowance payable across job groups D4 to E2 and denied excluding county assembly professionals from non-practising allowances, insisting there was no proof of such discrimination.
Justice Makau agreed with SRC, ruling that the petitioners had not shown evidence of demotion or violation of their constitutional rights.
“On the contrary, I hold that there is evidence to prove that the role of MCA has consistently been graded D4 in the SRC’s 1st, 2nd and 3rd review cycle and the County Assembly Forum welcomed that grading in all its correspondences cited above,” he ruled.
“Having considered the material before the court, I find that the petitioner (MCAs) has failed to prove by evidence that the respondent (SRC) has, by the impugned circulars, violated the Constitution and the rights of the petitioner’s members.”
The court further held that MCAs had not suffered any discrimination or loss as alleged, confirming the abolishment of sitting and retreat allowances.
