Listen to This Article Enhance your reading experience by listening to this article.

The removal of the offices of the First and Second Lady has saved taxpayers a Sh1.2billion, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has said.

Appearing before MPs who sit in the Budget and Appropriations Committee (BAC) chaired by Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro, Mudavadi explained that the cuts excluded the salaries of a number of staff.

He said; “Mr Chairman, as directed, we have rationalised Sh1.25 billion from the offices of the first lady, the spouse to the Deputy President after exempting allocations for salaries to employees and advisors under the presidency.”

The rationalisation of the budget has also led to the reduction of the budget for advisors by 50 percent saving Kenyans another Sh589.94 million while the cuts on confidential expenditure has saved another Sh 3.67bbillion.

He said: “In view of this, we have planned the FY 2024/2025 supplementary Estimates No 1 to cut down on the planned activities and projects to close the financing of Sh 344.3 billion and align the Budget to the revised fiscal framework.”

He added “In the recurrent budget, we are proposing to rationalise expenditure amounting to Sh 40.3 billion.

Rationalisation plan

This amount is inclusive of Sh2.7 billion rationalisation under parliament and Sh0.5 billion under parliament. The rationalisation targeted non priority areas in the recurrent budget, as well as rationalisation of salary adjustment for civil services and teachers.”

The budget for the two offices was slashed after President William Ruto announced that the offices of First Lady Rachel Ruto, and that of Second Lady Dorcas Rigathi had been scrapped as part of the government’s austerity measures.

In the 2024/25 budget, the Office of Rachel Ruto was allocated Sh696 million which is Sh100 million more than the previous financial year.

Pastor Dorcas Rigathi’s office was allocated Sh 557 million, a reduction of Sh160 million from the 2023/24 budget.

In February 2023, the Office of the Spouse to The Prime Cabinet Secretary held by Tessie Mudavadi, the spouse to Musalia Mudavadi was unveiled forcing him to clarify that the office was not funded by taxpayers.