Kenya’s members of parliament are among the best-remunerated politicians in the world, although the country is one of the poorest. One of the reasons may be that the members of parliament have set their own levels of remuneration through legislation. When the term of a parliament nears its end, they have typically passed laws granting themselves substantial bonuses and other perks and privileges.
All that was supposed to end when the country’s new constitution was adopted. Under the constitution, parliamentarians no longer have the power to set their own remuneration; this task has been given to the Salaries and Remuneration Commission. However, that has not stopped creative legislators from trying. A few months ago, members of parliament passed an act awarding themselves substantial bonuses, but after a public outcry the president refused his assent.
Last week, members of parliament tried again. This time they passed two acts, one giving the president substantial retirement benefits and the other giving themselves enormous bonuses as well as bodyguards for life, diplomatic passports and a government-funded funeral. Once again, following public outcry, the president has refused his assent to the act giving benefits to members of parliament, but he has assented to the act which gives himself hefty rewards.