More than a half a million farmers in 40 counties have so far accessed the subsidised fertiliser from the government. This is according to the cabinet secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development Mithika Linturi who says that about 500,436 farmers benefited from some 3,302,683 bags of subsidised fertilizer issued by the government. The CS, in a statement to lawmakers in Parliament, also said that the government was working on plans to reduce prices of top-dressing CAN fertilizer and its distribution across the country to boost food production. Linturi acknowledged the relatively high cost of CAN fertilizer, which is currently retailing…
Author: Silas Apollo
A Parliamentary Committee has begun investigations into the decision by the administration of former President Uhuru Kenyatta to grant tax waivers to companies during his reign as President. This week, the National Assembly’s Finance Committee summoned companies said to have received the waivers, some amounting to hundreds of millions of shillings. The waivers, the committee said, are believed to have been authorised by the National Treasury, a move they said denied the Kenya Revenue Authority the opportunity to collect taxes. First to appear before the committee chaired by Molo MP Kimani Kuria was managing a liquor manufacturing firm – London…
The Council of Legal Education flouted several laws on procurement, compensation of staff and finance management leading to a possible loss of millions of funds at the institution. The Office of the Auditor-General reports that the council failed to observe the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission guidelines, and the Public Finance Management Act, 2012, while discharging its duties. The report for the financial year ended June 30, 2021, says that the Council may have, as a result of these violations, paid contractors for work not done, breached the rights of its employees and…
A Parliamentary Committee have questioned the manner of compensation of affected land owners by construction of the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone in Mombasa County, with allegations of double compensation. The National Assembly Committee on Land, chaired by North Mugirango MP Joash Nyamoko, made the revelations following a fact-finding visit to the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone to address issues surrounding land compensation for Project Affected Persons (PAPs). The visit follows a series of meetings between the committee, the National Land Commission (NLC), the Ministry of Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Planning and the Special Economic Zone Authority to…
The government has announced plans to invest about Sh50 billion into the private sector to provide water, housing, transport, infrastructure and other services. The Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) Directorate says that the funds – which will be mobilised this financial year, seek to complement efforts by the government to provide key services to the public. PPP director-general Christopher Kirigua says that the National Treasury has identified at least six sectors for the public-private partnerships. Some of these sectors include water, housing, transport, infrastructure, trade and industry, which the government says it intends to synergise with the private sector through the PPP…
The Budget and Appropriations Committee of the National Assembly has recommended the recognition of village heads as national government administration officers (NGAO). This is among a raft of recommendations the Committee has made while considering various legislative proposals. Should the proposed amendment to the National Coordination Bill sail through in Parliament, village heads who are engaged will take home a total of Sh7,000 per month consisting of a monthly stipend of Sh4,000, transport allowance of Sh2,000 and airtime allowance of Sh1,000. The committee made the recommendation in recognition of what it says is the crucial role village elders play in…
The Leadership of the National Assembly has hinted at the possibility of allowing lawmakers to hold a fifth sitting every week. The new proposal – subject to approval by members of the House – is meant to assist MPs in clearing a backlog of pending legislative proposals awaiting consideration. Currently, the House typically sits on Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday morning, and Thursday afternoon. Speaking during a session to debate the Value Added Tax (Electronic Internet and Digital Market Supply) Regulations, 2023, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Moses Wetang’ula, stated that the House Business Committee had noted a massive backlog of…
The lender had advanced Sh45.2 million to entrepreneurs to set up information hubs across the country Revelations by the National Assembly Public Investments Committee on Commercial Affairs and Energy over failure to recover Sh45.2 million ‘Pasha Loans’ has placed the chief executive of Family Bank Rebecca Mbithi on the spot. The Committee led by Pokot South MP David Pkosing met the lender’s CEO, as part of an ongoing probe into circumstances leading to the onboarding of the lender by Information, Communication Technology Authority (ICTA) to advance the said loans on November 3, 2010. Controversies surrounding non-recovery of the loans are…
By Silas Apollo The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has defended its decision to pay Sh1.5 billion for the acquisition of the Integrity Centre Building in Nairobi, following concerns from the office of the Auditor-General that the transaction was done outside the law. EACC chief executive officer Twalib Mbarak says that the transaction was above board, despite questions by the Auditor-General’s office that payments for the buildings were made without documents from the seller. Mbarak, who appeared before the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee, further argued that no funds were lost during the transaction. The EACC CEO had appeared before…
The Senate Public Accounts Committee has ordered a forensic audit into the alleged loss of some Sh18 billion said to have been embezzled from the Nairobi city county government. The committee chaired by Homabay Senator Moses Kajwang called for the audit following revelations made by the office of the Auditor-General exposing what audit reports argued were widespread corruption and financial mismanagement in the city county. The committee made the recommendations after it met with Nairobi City governor Johnson Sakaja and a team from State House led by State House Comptroller Kato Ole Metito to address the audit queries for the…
