Last week Kenya’s politicians voted themselves a 41% pay rise, taking the monthly pay of an ordinary member of parliament from Sh851,000 to Sh1.1 million, with further automatic 5% annual increases. Kenyans are due to vote on a new constitution which, if passed, will remove from politicians the ability to determine their own salaries, so the latest money grab is a case of getting in while the going is good.
To put things in perspective, Kenya is one of the 30 poorest countries in the world. Its economy is around 3% of the size of Australia’s, although it has 80% greater population. Under the new pay proposals, according to NTV Kenya, Kenyan MPs will be paid 50% more than German MPs, and 110% more than French MPs. The Kenyan prime minister will be paid 10% more than the US president and more than a third more than the British prime minister.
Unsurprisingly, there is no money in the Kenyan budget to pay the increased salaries, which would have to be financed by borrowings. The Treasurer has indicated that he intends to oppose the increases, but it is likely that MPs will block parliamentary business until they can get their way. It is often argued that increased pay reduces corruption, but in this case most observers see the pay increases as an example of open corruption.