Ruto Administration Withdraws Ksh1.3 Trillion Manually in Seven Months

Ruto Administration Withdraws Ksh1.3 Trillion Manually in Seven Months – CoB Report

A new report by the Controller of Budget (CoB) has revealed that President William Ruto’s administration manually withdrew a staggering Ksh1.3 trillion over seven months, raising concerns over transparency in government spending.

Massive Manual Withdrawals Uncovered

According to the report, which was submitted to the National Assembly’s Finance and National Planning Committee on February 21, 2025, the manual withdrawals occurred between July 12, 2024, and February 20, 2025 at the request of the national and county governments.

The bulk of these transactions, amounting to Ksh893.97 billion, were allocated for public debt payments. County governments followed closely with Ksh222.61 billion, disbursed manually across nine transactions. However, the report did not specify which counties made these requests, listing only the dates of the transactions.

Breakdown of Withdrawals

Public Debt Payments: Ksh893.97 billion (manual)
County Government Withdrawals: Ksh222.61 billion (manual)
Recurrent Expenditure: Ksh198.23 billion (manual), Ksh576.57 billion (automated)
Development Expenditure: Ksh4.12 billion (manual), Ksh159.83 billion (automated)
Other Payments: Judiciary Fund (Ksh13.3 billion), Pensions (Ksh11.35 billion), Equalisation Fund (Ksh1.96 billion)

Despite having a fully automated financial system, these payments were manually processed, raising concerns over the lack of transparency and accountability in government financial operations.

Controller of Budget Raises Alarm

CoB Margaret Nyakang’o expressed concern over the lack of specific details in these transactions, stating that many of the manual requisitions were presented in lump sums, making it difficult to track expenditures.

“At the end of the quarter, they submit lump sum returns, which still lack specifics on how the money was spent. We have had to reject some of the returns because they lack details,” Nyakang’o told the committee.

She questioned why the government continues to make selected payments manually despite having an automated system in place, vowing to raise the matter with the National Treasury.

Treasury CS Distances Himself from the Scandal

National Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi distanced his office from responsibility, insisting that individual accounting officers should explain why payments were processed manually.

“Payments are done by the accounting officers who, in this case, should answer why they bypassed the system if that is indeed true,” said Mbadi.

He further stated that all public debt payments should go through the automated system, describing the manual withdrawals as “interesting.”

Lawmakers Demand Answers

Members of the Finance and National Planning Committee expressed deep concerns about the revelations, questioning why huge sums of money were being transacted manually.

Committee Chairperson Kimani Kuria criticized the practice, stating: “We cannot insist on paying small fees electronically while settling our debts manually. For a government with all its systems online, why should we pay our debt manually?”

Kitui Rural MP David Mwalika echoed these concerns, emphasizing the need for transparency in public debt payments, which consume a significant portion of national revenue.

“Public debt has been one of our major headaches as a country, yet now we are being told these payments have been processed manually. The question we must ask is why? And the CoB must help us get answers,” he said.

Key Public Debt Withdrawals

The report detailed major public debt requisitions, including:

July 15, 2024: Ksh56 billion
August 19, 2024: Ksh73 billion
September 25, 2024: Ksh37 billion
October 24, 2024: Ksh46 billion
December 10, 2024: Ksh50 billion
December 17, 2024: Ksh59 billion
February 17, 2025: Ksh56 billion
February 18, 2025: Ksh51 billion

The Finance Committee has announced plans to summon Treasury CS John Mbadi for further clarification on the issue.

What Next?

Lawmakers are now pushing for a strict adherence to the automated financial system to prevent potential financial mismanagement. With the spotlight now on the government’s handling of funds, Kenyans will be keen to see whether accountability measures are enforced.

For more breaking news and in-depth analysis, stay tuned to Nairobian.

In other news:Ruto Defends Church Donations, Gives Ksh20M to City Church, Pledges Ksh100M

Ruto Administration Withdraws Ksh1.3 Trillion Manually in Seven Months – CoB Report