President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday defended his Chief of Staff Joseph Kinyua after his name was dragged into the alleged Sh5 Billion Health Ministry scandal.
Speaking during a stopover at Kanduyi area in Bungoma town, President Kenyatta stated that Mr Kinyua's actions were helpful for the County Government and not what the media wanted to portray to the public.
“I was shocked to see in the papers today, someone saying Kinyua should go home because we gave Bungoma County Sh100 Million meant for the health sector," Kenyatta said while on his way to Kibabii University where he presided over the institution's inaugural graduation ceremony.
"I am asking you, my friends, is the money supposed to come to Bungoma hospitals for residents to acquire proper healthcare, or is it supposed to go back to Nairobi?"
According to the final interim audit report tabled in Parliament by auditor Bernard Muchere, Kinyua is said to have ordered payments amounting to Sh400 Million to suppliers in different hospitals despite lacking the authority to do so.
The report revealed that the Chief of Staff ordered the Ministry to pay Sh200 Million for consultancy at Nanyuki County Hospital instead of transferring the money to the facility for it to pay its own contractors.
The audit further raised a red flag on why contractors renovating Lamu and Bungoma County Hospitals each received Sh100 Million for the work, with the order coming directly from Kenyatta's aide.
Muchere faulted the payments to the contractors terming them unprocedural since the money was supposed to be wired to the specific hospitals where the expenses were incurred but not paid directly from the Ministry.
“Verification of vote books shows that the ministry paid suppliers directly on behalf of Nanyuki County Hospital. The directives were communicated to the Ministry by the Chief of State,” the report was quoted by Business Daily.
Auditor Muchere told Parliament that a deeper investigation should be conducted to ascertain the amount of money lost in improper payments at the Ministry.
Kinyua has now been faulted for giving the direct orders since the Constitution gives only the Controller of Budget the mandate to authorise usage of public funds.
