Ward representatives have joined governors in opposing the state's bid to forcefully take over county pension schemes.
Council of Governors and the County Assemblies Forum have rejected the move, terming it unlawful and unconstitutional.
They said the action will put at risk billions of shillings meant for the county workers pension.
The government has classified the schemes as State Corporations, essentially putting them on the radar of the cash-strapped Treasury that has been mopping up excess funds from the parastatals to fund its programmes.
Currently, Laptrust and CPF are the main schemes for county government workers. The two schemes hold about Sh60 billion.
In a press statement issued on Thursday, COG and CAF have termed the classification of Lap trust and CPF as State Corporations as unconstitutional, illegal and ultra vires.
“Laptrust and CPF are neither state corporations nor agencies of the national government to warrant the pervasive control and direction embodied in the impugned Directives,” they said.
CoG’s Human Resource Committee Chairman Wycliffe Wangamati (Bungoma) and CAF Chairman Ndegwa Wahome, issued the statement.
The governors and MCAs argued that Laptrust and CPF are pension schemes for the employees of the county governments as opposed to the national government.
“Laptrust and CPF do not receive, spend or manage any funds from or on behalf of the national government to warrant the pervasive control and direction embodied in the impugned Directives,” they said.
COG and CAF held that CPF is one of the best-run pension schemes managed by Trustees from the Devolution ministry, county employees, Water Service Providers, the pensioners, an accountant and the Law Society of Kenya.
They maintained that the pension fund can only be revoked as prescribed in law and not in any other way.
“There exist many occupational pension schemes for public entities in Kenya. They are managed by Trustees without any interference from the national government because they are not state corporations according to the State Corporations Act,” they said.
They held that the trustees do not have a fiduciary duty to obey any directives issued by the cabinet secretaries, the State Corporations Advisory Committee or any other agencies of the national government named in the directives in question.
On August 22, Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua issued a circular requiring Cabinet Secretaries and other national government officers to exercise pervasive control and direction on the management and administration of pension schemes for county government workers.
“The issuance of the most recent circular certainly goes against the spirit of consultations between the two levels of government that was agreed upon at the meeting held on August 17th 2021,” they said.
COG and CAF held that the role of the national government on pension matters for county employees is limited to prescribing standards for social security and professional pension plans.
This, they said, is according to the fourth schedule, paragraph 14 of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010, which states: “Consumer protection, including standards for social security and professional pension plans.”
“It is the position of the council and CAF that the constitutional mandate of the national government with regards to matters pension of the county employees do not extend beyond consumer protection and prescribing of norms and standards,” they said.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris