November 11, 2024

Kenya: State House Spends Sh963mn On New Vehicles, Building Refurbishment

2 min read

Nairobi — The state house continues to spend large on hospitality, travel, and allowances despite the austerity pledge by President William Ruto, according to a new report by the Controller of Budget (CoB) Margaret Nyakango.

The auditor general report shows that State House spent Sh963 million on the purchase of new vehicles and refurbishment of buildings alone.

Likewise, it spent Sh298.16 million by the end of the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, on foreign travel, with hospitality galloping a staggering Sh1.17 billion.

‘Other Expenses’, the data shows, amounted to Sh100.95 billion, representing 4 percent of the total gross recurrent expenditure.

The report also shows significant expenditures by various government ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs), casting doubt on the government’s commitment to cost-cutting measures.

“The State Department for Foreign Affairs and the State House recorded the highest recurrent expenditure of the revised gross budget at 100 percent,” read the report in part.

In June, President Ruto announced new austerity measures anchored on scaling down budget in government following the deadly Gen-Z protests that led to the withdrawal of the Finance Bill 2024 following protests that left more than 60 people dead.

President Ruto emphasized that the withdrawal of the bill would result in a budget deficit, with no additional taxation mechanism to finance the Sh3.9 trillion budget for the upcoming financial year.

He assured those operational expenditures in the three arms of government, as well as devolved units, would be reduced.

“In the Presidency and Office of the Presidency, we will reduce the confidential vote, travel budget, hospitality, purchase of motor vehicles, renovations, and other expenditures,” Ruto stated.

President Ruto affirmed his administration’s commitment to listening to the will of the people and vowed to tackle corruption ruthlessly.

“We must live within our means, respecting the very loud message that is coming from the people of Kenya. I will have conversations with stakeholders on this matter as we chart our way forward,” the president said.

The Head of State noted that various pending development projects would face setbacks due to the budget cuts, given the calls by Kenyans for a ‘leaner’ budget during these harsh economic times.

By Capital FM.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *