Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir has now come out to defend his Nairobi counterpart Johnson Sakaja over the recent clash with Kenya Power Lightning Company.
Nassir said the move by the Nairobi county government to demand wayleave fees seeks to safeguard county revenues and uphold the
constitutional and legal framework that governs the relationship between county
governments and entities operating within their jurisdictions.
''It is a
matter of great concern that Kenya Power, a state corporation entrusted with
the vital mandate of electricity distribution, has chosen to blatantly
disregard the constitutional and statutory authority of city counties by
refusing to remit wayleave fees for its use of public land and
infrastructure,'' Nassir said.
''This refusal is not just an affront to county
governments but an outright act of aiding and abetting tax evasion, which is
not only a criminal offense but also a direct attack on devolution.''
In response to accusations regarding the payment of wayleave charges, Kenya Power quoted section 223 of the Energy Act, 2019.
"No public body shall charge levies on public energy infrastructure without the consent of the cabinet secretary in writing," the utility firm said.
But Nassir argued that wayleaves, servitudes, and
easements on county land fall squarely under the jurisdiction of county
governments, adding that paying the dues was crucial for empowering county
governments to generate their revenue and provide services to their people.
The Mombasa governor was reacting to the retaliatory
actions the two entities had been involved in in recent times.
Trouble after Kenya Power disconnected
power in some of the City county offices over unpaid bills.
In retaliation, County Secretary Godfrey Akumali confirmed that
they disconnected the sewerage system and water supply to their Stima Plaza in
response to the Kenya power move.
Kenya Power General Manager Commercial and Sales Rosemary
Oduor said they disconnected power in line with the law last week.
“We disconnected power in their offices and some of their
installations to distress for their bill arrears. When one fails to pay for
their bills, the utility can withdraw the service so that they are impressed upon
to pay the bill,” she said.
According to Oduor, they had written to the county
announcing their intention to disconnect power over unpaid bills.
She said they restored power to the City-County offices and
the affected installations on Friday after the City-County wrote back to them
expressing commitment to clear the pending bills.
“They did not communicate to us for a while, but on Friday, they
got back to us, confirming that they were making arrangements to pay a
proportion of the bill they were supposed to pay,” she said.
“They requested that we restore the power supply so that we
continue with that journey together. We restored the power supply on Friday
based on the commitment.”
In a rejoinder, Akumali accused KPLC of refusing to
settle the Sh4.83 debt even as he denied that the county owes the utility firm
Sh3.1 billion in electricity bills.
Akumali said they have already informed Kenya Power of the
amount they owe them as electricity bills adding that they have paid a part of it as their
commitment to addressing pending arrears.
“Let it be very clear—KPLC owes us Sh4.8 billion,” Akumali
stated.
“Several letters demanding payment—sent in 2017, 2019, and
2020—have gone unanswered. The county’s latest demand, issued on December 6,
2024, puts the outstanding amount at Sh4.83 billion.”
Akumali went on to ask Kenya Power to sort the
pending bills that they owe the county government.
