• A Parliamentary committee on Tuesday put the Controller of Budget on the spot for ‘illegally and irregularly’ authorising payment of Sh25.9 billion for the Medical Equipment Services programme.
• The programme entails leasing of assorted medical equipment from to selected health facilities across the 47 counties.
Image: FILE
The Controller of Budget was yesterday pressed to explain why they ‘illegally and irregularly’ authorised payment of Sh25.9 billion for the Medical Equipment Services programme.
The Senate ad hoc committee probing the programme questioned why the CoB approved funds for MES without any proof of agreement between the national and county governments.
Acting CoB boss Stephen Masha told the panel that he had not seen the details of the memorandum of understanding between the two levels of government that okayed the MES.
Under the Medical Equipment Services programme, the government leased assorted medical equipment for selected health facilities across the 47 counties.
“I was not privy to the contents of the agreements between the national and county government. COB releases the money on the vote,” Masha said.
He told the committee that some Sh29.1 billion has been allocated for the programme since the signing of the seven-year contract in 2015.
However, his office has approved Sh25.9 billion for the project since then.
But the lawmakers pressed Masha on why his office ignored the provision of Article 187 of the Constitution on agreements signed between the two levels of government.
“In your own judgement, was there a prudent use of public funds in the withdrawals you authorised? Your work entails more than just approvals,” Bungoma Senator Moses Wetangula said.
He added, “This is the height of irresponsibility of a public officer that you kept on authorising withdrawals of funds from the Treasury for the MES yet you have never seen the agreement between the two levels of government as envisaged in the Constitution.”
Senator Fatuma Dullo said it seemed the CoB only looked at the availability of the funds and approved withdrawals but did not care where and how the money would be spent.
Masha defended himself saying the MoUs signed between individual counties and the national government was a proof of agreement.
According to the acting CoB, the authorisation of the withdrawal of funds for MES project was guided by the MoU between the national government and each county government.
Other documents used to authorise funds were the National Government Appropriations Act and the County Allocation of Revenue Act (CARA).
“CARA provides that the conditional grant for leasing of medical equipment is included in the budget estimates of the national government subject to an intergovernmental agreement between national and county governments in accordance with article 187,” Masha told the committee.
The acting COB explained that from the analysis of the expenditure and budget reports from the Ministry of Health, Sh25.9 billion was paid up to 2018-2019 financial year since 2015-2016.
Wetangula, however, trashed Masha’s argument saying that the MoU is not the same as an agreement and challenged the CoB to refer to the Constitution.
“The Constitution talks about an agreement not an MoU. Who told you the counties agreed to sign the contract?” he asked.
(edited by O. Owino)