President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Cabinet nominees to Health and Industrialization and Enterprise Development dockets have a combined net worth estimated at Sh785.4 million, report by the National Assembly Committee on Appointments shows.
Health Cabinet Secretary-designate Mutahi Kagwe and his Industrialisation and Enterprise Development counterpart Betty Maina has Sh 667.8 million and Sh117.5 million respectively.
The House on Wednesday evening approved the report of the Committee on appointments paving way for their formal appointments by President Kenyatta.
It also commenced debate on the nomination of six principal secretaries who will take over various ministries once approved by lawmakers.
“The committee recommends that this House approves the nomination of Hon Mutahi Kagwe, EGH for appointment of Cabinet Secretary for Health by His Excellency the President of the republic of Kenya,” the committee chaired by Speaker Justin Muturi said in its report.
It adds: “Approves the nomination of Ms. Betty Chemutai Maina, CBS for appointment as Cabinet Secretary for Industrialisation, Trade and Enterprise Development by His excellency the President of the republic of Kenya.”
The report on the vetting of two nominees shows that Kagwe, a former Cabinet Minister and immediate former Nyeri senator estimated his sources income to be from TNS RMS (East Africa) Limited sh 2.6 in 2019, Tell-em Public Relations (EA) limited sh 2.9 million 2019 and TNS RMS East Africa Limited sh 218, 750 in January, 2020.
For outgoing outgoing PS’s net worth stood at Sh117.5 million derived from a salary earned a salary of Sh9.7 million in 2019 and sh 11.3 million in 2018 from the State Department for Industrialisation in 2019.
She had earned another sh 12.3 million in 2017 and an extra sh 11.3 million in 2016.
At the Kenya Association of Manufacturers , where she served as Chief Executive Officer, her salary and gratuity of Sh 15.1 million in 2015. As well as in 2014, she received Sh10.3 million as salary.
As a board member to anti-counterfeit agency and Laikipia University in 2014 having attended 8 meetings each costs Sh20,000 totalled to Sh160,000.
Some consulting services between October- November 2015 earned her some Sh3 million and some miscellaneous earning from farming.
The Public Officer Ethics Act requires all State officers to submit their financial declaration forms once every two years.
Section 26 of the act requires every public officer once every two years as prescribed by section 27, submit to the responsible Commission for the public officer a declaration of the income, assets and liabilities of himself, his spouse or spouses and his dependent children under the age of 18 years.
While section 27 provides that the wealth declarations must be made and shall be submitted in December of every second year.
The full financial disclosure is meant to allow the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission to detect and prevent corruption when top public servants are serving in office.
Section 29 says a person submitting a declaration or providing a clarification shall ensure that the declaration or clarification is correct, to the best of his knowledge.