President William Ruto, on Tuesday, April 11, addressed the ongoing delay of salaries to civil servants, including members of parliament.
Ruto, while speaking at the launch of the Performance Contracting Report at KICC, announced that the government will not borrow to pay the delayed salaries, an issue that has stirred debate between the opposition and the government.
"I assure Kenyans on the commitment I made that we are not going to borrow money and spend on recurrent expenditures, especially salaries," he stated.
"I know we have an issue of delayed salaries, and it is the first time we are having this crisis. But it is also our first time having such monumental debts," Ruto added.
Ruto assured Kenyans that a solution to reduce the debt burden was underway.
"We are well on course and we have to live within our means," he affirmed but did not offer a concrete solution to the government's crisis management approach.
His statement was short in explaining whether the civil servants will be paid in the near future or not and the timelines by which the crisis will be averted.
However, Ruto hinted at turning to taxes from Kenyans to reduce the amount borrowed from foreign countries.
"We will look for our taxes, I commend the taxman for the work they are doing during the difficult terrain. They were used to people not paying taxes," the president stated.
Ruto affirmed that he will not follow in his predecessor's footsteps to borrow money for recurrent expenditures emphasising that his administration will rely on the country's resources.
On Sunday 9, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua also addressed the delay stating that the National Treasury prioritised settling matured loans and did not have enough money left for the civil servants.
"What we are collecting this week will pay salaries and other requirements," Gachagua stated.
The DP blamed retired President Uhuru Kenyatta's administration for allegedly emptying the public coffers.
