Cabinet Secretary for Ministry of Gender, Culture, Arts and Heritage Aisha Jumwa has publicly disagreed with her Public Service counterpart Moses Kuria over the recent declaration.
Aisha Jumwa in a statement shared on X platform on Monday, February 12, exerted her mandate by insisting that she was in charge of issues relating to royalties to musicians and artists.
This was after Kuria announced plans to pay artists via eCitizen in new reforms.
Jumwa however made it clear that her Ministry was engaging with relevant stakeholders to find a lasting solution regarding the disbursement of royalties to artists.
She noted that Kuria's proposal was valid but her ministry was at the center of reforms regarding payment of royalties.
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"I like the zeal of my Colleague and Friend Moses Kuria and in the spirit of one government approach this opinion is valid. However, my ministry through the State Department of Culture, Arts and Heritage is in charge and is working on streamlining the industry," Jumwa stated.
"There are ongoing discussions with stakeholders in the industry with the aim of streamlining it. Once discussions are concluded, the ministry will pronounce itself on the next course of action," she insisted.
CS Kuria had earlier announced that the payment through eCitizen would help address issues raised by artists. Further, he indicated that the move would enable artists to monitor the money collected by the various agencies tasked with the mandate.
According to Kuria's proposal, only the government will have the power to collect royalties and proceeds for musicians.
He argued that the move would seal loopholes used by unscrupulous dealers to scam artists.
"The government is spearheading amendments to the Copyright Act to create a government-run Collective Management Organisation. All music, copyrights and royalties will be paid through E-Citizen. Our artists will be individually registered. They can view online how much money is collected," Kuria wrote.
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