THE Taita Taveta county assembly has justified its Sh12 million one-week trip to Zanzibar to learn about devolution.
All the 35 MCAs and the speaker were condemned by members of the public for misusing the money on a single trip at a time the county is faced by many challenges including high poverty levels, lack of water, poor road network among others.
On Sunday, speaker Meshak Maghanga told the Star on the phone their trip was successful and that the MCAs learnt. He said the trip only took two days and those who said it took seven days are propagandists.
โZanzibar is far ahead compared to Kenya in matters devolution. They devolved two decades ago. Our trip was substantive,โ he said.
Maghanga said the MCAs travelled by road to Zanzibar making the trip less expensive. โWe travelled by road unlike other leaders who travel by air, which is more expensive,โ he said.
(and it cost 12 million for 2 days) Majority leader Jonnes Mghanga and Governor John Mruttu's political advisor Kimonge Mbogho said the trip was proper and timely.
โWe want the public to appreciate that these are transitional times and we must move around and spend money in order to learn from countries that instituted devolution before us.
All we are doing is for public good and we even have plans of going to Rwanda, South Africa, Japan, Germany and even the US so that we learn the very best ways of devolution. The money we use for these trips was planned for and we have decided to utilize it lest it is returned to the treasury,โ said the majority leader. Mbogho said the county executive is not to blame for anything that is done by the county assembly because they are an independent arm of the county government.
His statement comes amidst claims within the public and social media that the county assembly members arm-twisted governor Mruttu to endorse their lucrative trip and allowances before they could pass the crucial education and finance bills.
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http://the-star.co.ke/ne...rip#sthash.LtBaYgot.dpufIf Obiero did it, Who Am I?