Controller of Budget starved of funds for keeping State in check

The Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakango Thursday told Parliament that her office does not get the budgetary allocation it requires because of highlighting financial impropriety in national and county governments.

So dire is the situation, Nyakango said, that at times her staff cannot afford to photocopy documents when they are carrying out audits.

"We are even unable to photocopy documents required by legislators during their oversight mandate both at the national and county level. My office has been forced to ask MPs to pass by our library to view the documents they require on how State agencies have spent public funds,” said Nyakango.

The Controller of Budget was speaking when she appeared before the National Assembly's Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee.  She explained that her office requires at least Sh700 million every year to discharge its mandate. Out of this, Sh435 million is meant for salaries and  Sh200 million would cater for other functions.

She told the Committee chaired by Githunguri MP Gathoni wa Muchomba that inadequate financial resources had impeded efforts to amend the COB Act and review the draft regulations. The proposed amendments and the reviewed regulation await public participation and require a budget of about Sh20 million.

In the financial year 2023/24, a total of Sh3.87 trillion was approved from the consolidated fund and Sh314.13 billion allocated for ministerial development activities, Sh1.32 trillion for ministerial recurrent expenditure, Sh1.77 trillion for Consolidated Funds Services and Sh451.21 billion for county governments.

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Nyakango said that in the financial year 2023/24 under Article 207, there were 10 requisitions submitted to the COB to withdraw funds from the equalization fund with amount comprising of Sh207.5 million for the equalization fund secretariat recurrent expenses and Sh156.14 million for development expenditure.

She said that in the same financial year under article 173, there were 100 requisitions submitted to the Controller of Budget to approve the withdrawal of funds from the Judiciary fund to the Judiciary operational accounts approved in the amount of Sh21.56 billion which comprised of Sh927.48 million for development activities and Sh21.56 billion for recurrent expenditure.

In the same financial year under article 207, County Governments submitted to the Office of the Controller of Budget 8,636 exchequer requisitions for authorisation in the amount of Sh456.37 billion, with this comprising of Sh113.01 billion for development expenditure and Sh343.36 billion for recurrent expenditure.

“Out of the total 8,470 requisitions amounting to Sh451.21 billion were approved during the period representing 98.9 percent of the submitted withdrawal requests, other requisitions were declined due to various reasons such as non-deduction of applicable withholding taxes and PAYE,” said Dr Nyakango.

Nyakango said the office of the Controller of Budget provides quarterly reports to each House of Parliament on the implementation of the budgets of national and county governments.

The Controller of Budget said her office provides various advisories to Parliament and county governments on measures to improve budget implementation and further advises Parliament where the Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury exercises his mandate to stop the transfer of funds to a State organ or public entity.

“The Controller of Budget enforces the budgetary ceilings on National and County governments expenditures as set by Parliament and other relevant institutions, the ceilings include allocating at least 30 per cent of the total budget to development expenditure and ensuring that personal emoluments expenditure do not exceed 35 per cent of total revenue,” said Dr Nyakango.