President William Ruto's cabinet nominee for Tourism, Peninah Malonza was put in a tight spot by Members of Parliament (MPs) after she misquoted facts in her responses.
In particular, the former Kitui Deputy Governor was called out after she stated that only Ksh2.5 million was allocated for compensating Kenyans affected by wildlife conflict.
She was forced to clarify her statements by stating that it was a slip of the tongue and that she meant Ksh2.5 billion. However, lawmakers hard-pressed her to explain the incoherence in the figures she was mentioning.
"If the nominee does not know, she should just say that and express that she will check the facts later. Next time she will say it is Ksh2.5 trillion. If she is not sure of the facts. She should just leave them out," Imenti North MP, Rahim Dawood stated.
The corrections by the committee members also saw the National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula advise Malonza to avoid misquoting figures.
"Peninah, you know, in an interview, even a no is an answer, you do not have to make guesses.
"No one knows everything, it is how you will engage in office if we approve you. You can say you will formulate policies, and legislation and find out. All those responses are good answers," Wetangula advised.
Consequently, Kenyans took to social media to question whether the nominee had prepared adequately for the screening.
"Peninah Malonza has struggled with facts during her vetting for Tourism CS. Frustrated vetting committee with irrelevant & unsatisfactory answers. If approved, she will be in charge of one of Kenya's main GDP contributors," BBC journalist Ferdinand Omondi stated.
On her part, Malonza - who declared that she is worth 300 million- expressed that she would do more research regarding her docket even as she asked the parliamentarians to clear her.
"I want to thank the vetting committee for engaging me in this learning experience. It is my hope that the committee with find me worthy and approve me for this docket.
"I promise to quickly internalise policies and legislation in the tourism industry," she stated.
If approved by parliament, Malonza will take over from outgoing CS Najib Balala, one of Kenya's longest office bearers of the tourism docket.
