Lawmakers vow to increase their pay by 20 per cent

Photo: gadocartoons.com

Kenyan members of parliament have reacted with shock to the use of the word's 'pay' and 'cut' in the same sentence. Their reaction at an emergency press conference came after the president announced that he and the deputy president would be taking a 20 percent pay cut on their salaries, while cabinet secretaries would take a 10 percent pay cut. Ironically, the president announced this resolution after a retreat for top government officials in one of the most expensive hotels in the country. Nevertheless, a government parrot, who attended the retreat explained that taking a pay cut did not mean that the top dogs would quit extravagant and wasteful spending of public funds.

"Pay cuts or not, we have to live a life worthy of our stature in society," he offered.

The president has also directed parastatal chiefs to take a 20 per cent salary cut. This new directive prompted MPs to call an emergency parliamentary meeting, oddly attended by all MPs, during which it emerged that it was illegal for the president to vary his salary during one term. For that reason, a handful of lawmakers volunteered to challenge the president's pay cut in court. MPs also pledged to ensure that the word 'rise' is reinstated to its former position in any sentence with the word 'pay' in it, and vowed to increase their salaries to prove that parliament is an independent body, that is free from external influence.

                                                                                                -Additional reporting by Mugambi Mutegi