NAIROBI, Kenya, May 1 – President Uhuru Kenyatta has assured Kenyans that all coronavirus-related expenses drawn from the public coffers will be audited.
Speaking during a televised address to mark Labour Day on Thursday, the Head of State refuted claims that Sh1.3 billion had been mismanaged.
“Every single cent that has been used in combating this pandemic will be audited in broad daylight, so that Kenyans can know how these funds was utilized and who did it help. We shall make it public, nothing will be hidden,” he said.
The President urged politicians and citizens against sensationalizing the matter.
The allegation that the funds were misappropriated and used majorly on non-essentials has caused uproar among Kenyans.
But Health Chief Administrative Secretary Rashid Aman said there is an accounting team and international partners working on clarifying the breakdown of funds contained in a document submitted to the National Assembly Health Committee, from where the contested figures emerged, and a report will soon be made public.
Kenyatta;s remarks came as Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe issued a statement on his Facebook page terming the allegations as propaganda.
The document submitted to the National Assembly indicated the ministry used Sh4 million on tea and snacks and Sh2 million on airtime.
Sh42 million was allegedly used to lease fifteen ambulances.
The health ministry also used Sh14.4 million to maintain and fuel 30 vehicles used by its officers across the country, translating to Sh40,000 per vehicle every week.
The ministry spent Sh2 million out of the Sh6 million approved for airtime for some of its 500 staff for a period of three months.
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