Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba broke his silence on Tuesday, August 22, addressing a range of issues that his Ministry had been accused of.
Through his Head of Communications, Pauline Sheghu, CS Namwamba refuted the accusations levelled against him, likening them to character assassination.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, the spokesperson criticised Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei for his recent comments. Sheghu firmly stated that the legislator's claim, alleging that the CS and his associates had flown to Budapest, Hungary on first-class tickets while athletes were grappling with challenges, was entirely false.
Cherargei had accused the Cabinet Secretary and other high-ranking Ministry officials of flying their girlfriends to the tournament at the expense of the taxpayer.
"The allegations they have been putting he is at Budapest. The CS has been around. He has not gone anywhere. He is following austerity measures that have been put forth by the President. Sending a whole lot of people like the last regime is not his kind," she explained.
"The only people who are there are athletes and the people in charge of sports."
She also rejected assertions from National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung'wah that Kenyan athletes who represented the nation in various capacities had missed out on their entitled allowances and other benefits.
The Ministry provided reassurance that Kenyan athletes are receiving their allowances punctually and are being fairly compensated for their contributions.
"We give them allowances on time. All sportsmen and women who are outside the country are facilitated in good time. That is what the CS wants," the Ministry clarified.
Regarding the accusations raised by Deputy Speaker Gladys Boss Shollei concerning the Cabinet Secretary's procurement of counterfeit Adidas kits for Kenyan athletes, Sheghu categorically dismissed these allegations as baseless propaganda.
She clarified that Team Kenya has an existing partnership with Nike, which supplies all the team's sports merchandise. "Team Kenya has never worn Adidas. They are branded by Nike. It is not the CS who brands them," she explained.
Moreover, the official argued that the partnership with Nike had been in place well before CS Namwamba took over the sports docket.
The communications director went on to emphasise that the political leaders have been engaging in empty rhetoric through social media and television appearances, without undertaking the necessary steps to communicate with the Ministry and acquire accurate information.
"His office is an open door policy. That is how he works. No one has tried to reach him," she revealed how politicians were playing to the public gallery.
To address the false allegations directed at him and the sports docket, the CS has written to Parliament and requested to appear before the House to field questions from lawmakers on the different issues that have been raised.
The CS is scheduled to appear before the National Assembly on Wednesday, August 23, at 2:30 p.m.
