Nyakang’o rejects Sh1b State House dais funding request

Controller of Budget (CoB) Margaret Nyakang’o has rejected a Sh1.1 billion request by State House to cater for the construction of a modern presidential dais.

Out of the amount, Sh700 million would have gone towards the construction of the dais at the State House gardens while the remaining Sh400 million would have been used to purchase more motor vehicles.

In total, the CoB rejected requests amounting to Sh58.4 billion received from 23 ministries under Article 223 of the Constitution.

In her latest report for the last nine months dated May 2024, Nyakang’o only approved requests amounting to Sh8.2 billion despite the National Treasury requesting for spending requests of Sh66.7 billion to fund various activities.

Nyakang’o although acknowledging the provision in law for such requests, told the Cabinet Secretary, National Treasury, to obtain the consent of Parliament within two months after the first withdrawal of the money.

 Article 223 of the Constitution allows the MDAs to access additional funding during the budget implementation process if the amount appropriated for any purpose under the Appropriation Act is insufficient or a need has arisen for expenditure for a purpose for which no amount has been claimed by that Act or money has been withdrawn from the Contingencies Fund.

 She said: “In the first nine months of FY 2023/2024, the National Treasury approved Sh66.72 billion under Article 223 of the Constitution. This amount was 2 percent of the budget revised net estimates and within the 10 percent ceiling in Article 223 of the Constitution.”

Approval sought

She added: “If Parliament is not sitting during the time contemplated in clause (2) or is sitting but adjourns before the approval has been sought, the approval should be sought within two weeks after its next sitting. It would be prudent to confirm sufficient liquidity before approving Article 223 proposals from the MDAs.”

She also rejected Sh361 million requested by the Executive Office of the President out of which Sh211 million was to cater for the settlement of outstanding contractual obligations for the construction of the Small Claims Courts while Sh150 million was to facilitate activities under the Office of Government Spokesperson.

KICC facelift

Also rejected was a Sh1.5 billion request from the State Department for Tourism to cater for the facelift of Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), Sh104 million from the state department of trade to support the operations of the Office of the Cabinet Secretary, Sh16.3 million from the state Department for East African Community to purchase the Cabinet Secretary’s official motor vehicle and Sh18 billion from the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum that would have been spent on stabilization of petroleum pump prices for August-September.

Nyakang’o also did not approve State Department for Basic Education’s request of Sh450 million to cater for Wings to Fly funding under the Federal Republic of German (Sh200 million) and to cater for the improvement of National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) dryers and bulk storage facilities Sh250 million as well as State Department for Medical Services request of Sh 290 million to Cater for the Covid-19 outbreak and strengthen the National System for Public Health Emergency.

 A request from the Ministry of roads and transport of Sh2.5 billion to facilitate payment of pending bills for the Mwache -Tsunza-Mtenza road and cater for planned drought humanitarian emergency response intervention (July –September 2023) as well as a request from the ministry of defense of Sh1.7 billion to Support operations in response to El Nino rains (Sh200 million) and to cater for AIA under the Eastern Electricity Highway Project (Kenya Ethiopia Interconnector) (Sh1.5 billion) have also been rejected.

Nyakango’ has also not approved Sh1.14 billion required to support the IFMIS department’s operations, maintenance and implementation of projects.

 Also rejected are various requests amounting to billions of shillings from the National Treasury. They include Sh9.8 billion request to cater for the budget deficit, settle  pending bills and provide additional funding for revenue mobilization- KRA as only Sh1 billion was approved, Sh3.4 billion to pay pending bills and settle outstanding invoices under the Projects, Sh1.1 billion to support the IFMIS Department’s operations, maintenance, and implementation of projects and Sh5 billion related to donor fund IDA under infrastructure finance and public-private partnership project.