Treasury Rejects Calls to Slash Kibaki, Moi’s Pay

Retired presidents Mwai Kibaki and Daniel Arap Moi will not face any pay cuts after Treasury rejected calls to slash their pension.

Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) had advised the government to adjust the pension for the two former presidents in line with a reduction of President Kenyatta’s pay, which legally determines the benefits of the former heads of state.

The monthly pension of former presidents is set at 80 percent of the current salary paid to the sitting President in addition to other benefits like fuel, house and entertainment allowance.

The monthly pay for Kibaki and Moi was expected to drop after SRC trimmed President Kenyatta’s salary from Sh1.65 million to Sh1.44 million, according to Business Daily.

“We did not review the former President’s pension when SRC cut the sitting President’s pay because it was running against the Constitution,” a top Treasury official who sought anonymity told BD.

He added: “The Constitution is supreme and it should take precedent, and not the Kenya Gazette.”

The official was referring to a Kenya Gazette notice dated July 2017—which cut the salaries of top officials, including the President, Deputy President and Members of Parliament.

At the time, SRC indicated that the country would save Sh8.5 billion annually through pay cuts aimed at reducing the ballooning public wage bill.

Citing chapters 9 and 10 of the Constitution, the Treasury official argued that the supreme law does not support a cut on the wages of a section of State officers including the President, DP, former heads of state, judges and retired judges.

“The retirement benefits payable to a former President and a former Deputy President, the facilities available to and the privileges enjoyed by them shall not be varied to their disadvantage during their lifetime,” Chapter 9 states.

Budget estimates approved by Parliament show that Moi’s and Kibaki’s pension and benefits remained unchanged at Sh74 million in the year to June 2019.