SRC Heeds Call to Increase Medical Cover and Sendoff Package For MPs

Kenyan Members of Parliament and their families will now have access to a medical cover of more than 10 million shillings annual limit in addition to their increased pension package.

The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), after scrapping the many allowances that the MPs demanded, has granted them the additional medical perks and pension after receiving a memorandum from the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC), allowing for the same.

The SRC may also do the MPs a favor of non-refundable payment in the event that an MP’s medical cover is exhausted.

“However, this benefit will be managed on a case by case basis in line with the larger public service policy on medical ex-gratia,” said the commission.

Like their counterparts who lost their seats in the 2017 elections and walked away with 5.9 million shillings each as a sendoff package, one-term MPs are also going to receive a huge sendoff package of up to 31 percent and a refund of their pension without interest.

According to the memo by the PSC, members of parliament asked the SRC to allow that their 12.75 percent pension contribution be refunded in the event that they lose their seats.

Kenyan MPs, apart from their monthly salary have a number of allowances making them rank among the highest paid MPs in the world.

These demands exert pressure on the already distorted public sector remuneration.

Despite their already huge salary and allowances, they have lately been seen to advocate for an increase in their allowances, such as car maintenance allowances, mileage and daily subsistence allowance which the SRC refused to grant them.