Kenya’s President Mwai Kibaki, Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka and Prime Minister Raila Odinga will spend Kenya shillings 1.2 Billion (100 million shillings per month) on their households and press units this financial year.
Sep 3rd, 2008 by Mars Group Kenya
What the “Top Three” get for their households and press units:
|
|
Household services & press unit (kshs) |
|
President |
888.5 million |
|
Vice President |
230.7 million |
|
Prime Minister |
110.6 million |
|
Total |
1.229 billion |
Compare this with the entire recurrent budget of some selected Ministries/ Projects
|
Ministry/ PROJECT |
Total Recurrent Budget for Ministry (ksh) |
|
Roads |
1.2 billion |
|
Cooperative Development and Marketing |
882 million |
|
Northern Kenya & Arid Lands |
228 million |
|
Lands |
1.4 billion |
|
Nairobi Metropolitan Development |
260 million |
|
Business Process Outsourcing Park (Nairobi) – to employ 10,000 Kenyans |
900 million |
|
Youth Enterprise Fund & Youth Empowerment Centres |
750 million |
|
Free Tuition in Accredited Technical Training and Vocational Colleges countrywide |
465 million |
Source: 2008/2009 Estimates of Recurrent Expenditure of the Government of Kenya
Considering the economic condition of Kenyans, and the country’s substantial development finance needs, can we afford to pump so much into the personal comfort of so few? Relative to other budgetary provisions, the household budgets cannot be defended much longer. The amount of public funds spent on the households of the top three public officers in Kenya is truly staggering.
Thankfully, the press reports that Ida Odinga, the Prime Minister’s popular wife, has rejected the extra-budgetary and unauthorized Ksh 400,000 per month offered as compensation for “wise counsel and guidance which contribute to the public good in the course of nation building activities, besides playing hostess during national and other official public engagements.”
The irregular, and illegal, offer Mrs. Odinga turned down has apparently also been made by the Head of the Public Service Ambassador Francis Muthaura to Pauline Musyoka, wife of the Vice President. In our view Mrs. Ida Odinga was quite right to refuse the extra money offered to her by the Head of the Civil Service. Mrs. Musyoka would do us proud if she followed suit. Nevertheless, this episode suggests that this is an appropriate time for a very serious discussion about the amount of money consumed by the top three households in Kenya. Whether or not Ambassador Muthaura is entitled to rewrite the National Budget passed by Parliament – ex post facto and by circular – is a matter for another day.
Money for Nothing?
To their credit Kenyans, tired of being taken for granted, objected to Ambassador Muthaura’s extra-budgetary largesse. Both Ambassador Muthaura’s offers attracted considerable media coverage and public attention. This is as it should be. Worldwide, such payments from State coffers to pay relations of political and state officers are unpopular and controversial. For example every year, in the United Kingdom, a vigorous debate ensues about who among Her Majesty the Queen’s relatives should be dropped from the Civil List as recipients of granted public funds. The Civil List is the annual grant of money by the UK Parliament to the Monarch and other members of the Royal Family. Specific sums are allocated to named members. In 1981 the Queen undertook to refund to the Exchequer the sum granted to three of her cousins. In 1993, following some pressure form public and parliamentary opinion, she limited the payments from the list further so that only Her Majesty, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Late Queen Mother were eligible. In the same year it was also announced that the Queen would pay income tax on her personal income. Today, the cost of sustaining the civil list in the UK amounts to about UK Sterling 12.7 million (Ksh 1.6 billion). Whether Kenya, a much poorer country and one in which we have no monarchic tradition should allow public funds to be used for the maintenance of the families of public officers who are already amongst the highest paid in the world is a decision Kenyans must choose to make.
Living Large:
Unfortunately, the culture in public circles of living large at the expense of the larger public is well engrained. Ambassador Muthaura’s offer should be seen through the lens of a tradition of rewarding undeserving people from public funds in an arbitrary and discriminatory fashion. Tax money is collected and used not for the benefit of the public but for the personal comfort of the few – the higher up the totem pole, the more money needlessly spent in an opaque fashion. The Beijing Olympics “delegation” – 100 people – Ksh 100 million spent – being another recent example.
Regardless, few Kenyans are aware that the taxpayer is committed annually to pay far more for the households of the top three public officials than the Ksh 400,000 spousal allowances which are the current focus of debate.
Did you know for example that there are only three entries in the entire National Budget for “Household Services and Catering Services? These are for the President, the Vice President and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kenya. There are also only three entries in the entire National Budget for “Press Units” – also for the same three high public officers. The amounts provided for under these entries are alarmingly huge. Whether or not such expenditures can be justifiable is very debatable as the public outrage over the “Spouses’ Allowances” demonstrates.
So, what does the National Budget 2008 say Kenyans are also paying for?
The Presidential Household and Press
The total cost of the President’s household and the press service is Ksh 888.5 million this year. The National Budget says that the cost of maintaining the official residences of President Kibaki (6 State Lodges and State House Nairobi) is Ksh 823 million for this year. The President’s Press Unit (comprising 37 staff) is Ksh 65 million this year. The President has 388 staff employed in all the State residences and the use of 149 cars.
The Vice-Presidential Household and Press
The total cost of the Vice-President’s household and the press service is Ksh 230.7 million this year. The Vice-President’s household and press unit will cost the Kenyan taxpayer Ksh 185.3 million. The amount provided does not include the VP’s house allowance of Ksh 2.4 million (Ksh 200,000 per month). The Vice President’s household has an annual budget of Ksh 4.3 million for hospitality – about Ksh 358,000 per month. Just over Ksh 30 million is budgeted for rent under the VP’s Household budget line. The household can consume Ksh 14 million per year on fuel and stay within budget, while also spending Ksh 11 million on routine maintenance of vehicles, and a further Ksh 6.5 ,million on maintenance of other assets in the households. Over Ksh 75 million has been allocated to the VP’s household for domestic and foreign travel. Last year the Vice President’s official household comprised of 57 staff and there were 12 cars.
The Prime Minister’s Household and Press
The total cost of the Prime Minister’s household and the press service is Ksh 110.6 million this year. The Prime Minister’s household and catering budget Ksh 36.9 million annually. This includes Ksh 5 million for utilities-water and electricity, Ksh 1.2 million for advertising, Ksh 26.5 million for hospitality and Ksh 2.2 million for purchase of household furniture this year. Next year the Finance Minister projects the purchase of household furniture to increase to Ksh 5.5 million. Additionally, the Prime Minister has a house allowance of 4.8 million this financial year (about Ksh 400,000 per month). The Prime Minister also has a dedicated press unit whose budget is Ksh 68.9 million per annum.
What Else Can Be Refused or Cut?
Following the national political crisis which started in December 2007 and the economic hardship caused to the large masses of Kenyans the responsible thing for Government to do is to adopt austerity measures to ensure that no money is wasted, and that all national financial resources are conserved for use in alleviating the plight of tens of millions who live below the poverty line, and the rest of Kenyans who are suffering high food costs and living with 20% inflation. One way of tightening the Government’s belt is to sieve through the budget for waste and extravagance.
Analysis of this year’s budget points to numerous budget lines where Members of Parliament can cut government expenditure: among these are the provisions in the national budget for foreign travel; fuel, utilities such as electricity and water; purchase and maintenance of motor vehicles; rent by the Government of premises; hospitality expenses; and taxation waivers and privileges of elected officials. Such waste is making the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals more difficult if not impossible.
Once they return from their vacation, Members of Parliament must be seen to act and not just bicker by debating the budget. Now that Mama Odinga has shown us the way, are there any takers for proposed reduction of the household budgets of the “Top Three”?
Mwalimu Mati
Mars Group Kenya
kenya seems like a haven farm for the trio tribes. kikuyu, luo and akamba.
damn, what happened to the rest of kenyans i mean.
i think kenyans have to really think hard and look back to the colonial days.
request the british to come back and save the people from these tri-totalitarians.
or better still each province should be self governed. majimbo style.
OMG!! This is rediculous. What is wrong with what they have at the moment???? I thot Raila was different but looks like he is being sucked into s’thing he is not. That is enough to feed us for how long. This has to stop, what r we going to do???
MM
maybe you should consider writting a weekly paper to acess more people
really everyone should know about this outrageous budget allocations.
SM
Even the medical insurance we enjoy from employers excludes our own children that are 18 & over. Raila’s and Kibaki’s family is highly unlikely to under 18’s. They should fend for themselves. We depend on our salaries and these dignitaries should also do the same – why do we pay them twice?
GW
Would you please tell them? And tell us who you are.
NG
I wish there was a way of refusing to pay income tax!