Governors, senators term change of water law unfair

The Council of Governors (CoG) and the Senate have joined forces in calling for the shooting down of the Water (Amendment) Bill 2023 which is currently in the Senate.

The bill that seeks to amend the Water Act, 2016, has triggered multiple concerns with stakeholders reading bad faith in the motive behind the amendment as far as devolution is concerned.

Taita Taveta Governor Andrew Mwadime, who is the CoG’s Chair of Water, Forestry and Natural Resources Committee, warned over the potential implications of the bill on the devolved units’ constitutional power over water resources should it become a law.

While pointing out the importance of access to affordable water in marginalised regions, Mwadime was concerned that the amendments as passed in the National Assembly do not align with the Constitution adding that there was need for a win-win situation.

Win-win situation

“We have resolved that the new bill must give room for win-win situation and to ensure that water is accessed across every corner of the underserved marginalised areas at the cheapest rate… The way the bill was passed in the National Assembly, there were some areas that counties have been short-changed and this is why we were deliberating with various stakeholders to get the way forward,” explained the Chair.

Governor Mwadime was addressing the press in Mombasa on the sidelines of a multi-sectoral joint consultative forum by the Council of Governors-Kenya (CoG), Senate Consultative Forum, and Gatsby Africa on emerging and existing issues in the water sector.

His vice Chair, Laikipia Governor Joshua Irungu was concerned that the current bill “is clawing back so much of the functions of the county government and does not live to the spirit of the constitution.

“All this is geared to giving the people of Kenya access to clean affordable water.

We have agreed on a number of issues including on how the National and County government can consult each other as they decide, mobilise and implement programmes so that towards the end of the day even where we have the bulk water service that are under the National Government then in terms of the repayment of the various loans and investments that have been put in water, it will be seamless,” Irungu explained.

Vihiga Senator Godffrey Osotsi, who is the chairperson of County Public Investments and Special Funds Committee, accused the National Government of deliberately sponsoring an “unconstitutional bill” to erode gains that have so far been made in devolution as far as water provision is concerned.

“We all know that water provision is a devolved function but this particular piece of legislation is going to take away that from the counties to the National government. The position of most stakeholders is that this bill be stood down so that stakeholders can engage further and come up with better legislation to serve Kenyans,” he said.

Total overhaul

Osotsi further called for a total overhaul of the parent act — Water Act 2016 — to address the gaps that deny Kenyans access to affordable clean water.

The bill proposes the amendment of section 100 of the Act to provide for supply of bulk water in counties by waterworks development agencies established under the proposed law.

It also seeks to allow the agencies to petition the Water Services Regulatory Board to declare a default and order the transfer of the water services providers functions to them in the event that a county government fails to repay loans advanced to finance development, rehabilitation or maintenance works.