Treasury CS John Mbadi has defended the allocation to the Presidency in the budget, arguing that renovations at State House are necessary because the country's seat of power has been neglected for years.
Responding to criticism of the Presidency's spending, Mbadi said the focus on the State House budget overlooked the broader responsibilities of the Presidency and the need to restore key government facilities.
He said the State House had deteriorated to the point where parts of the building were leaking, describing the situation as embarrassing for a country that regularly hosts visiting heads of state and other international dignitaries.
"The truth of the matter is that if you saw the State House that we have been having, it had been left to rot. That's the seat of power," he said during an interview at Citizen TV on Wednesday.
"Even if you look at the White House, they always maintain it. It looks beautiful. Our State House should not be left in a deplorable state where it is leaking. That's a shame. That is where you host international dignitaries. The first impression they have of Kenya is that the people there are very disorganised. How do you expect them to do business?"
The Treasury CS also noted that the Presidency's allocation goes beyond State House alone, saying it also caters for State Lodges and other functions under the Presidency.
Mbadi also defended the government's borrowing plans contained in the Sh4.8 trillion budget, acknowledging concerns that domestic borrowing could crowd out private sector lending.
"It is not just about State House. We have State Lodges; we have the Presidency, and under the Presidency, there is a lot. If the government is not careful and borrows more from the domestic market, chances are that it can easily crowd out the private sector," he said.
However, he maintained that the government had assessed the economy and was confident the domestic capital market was sufficiently liquid to accommodate the planned borrowing without disrupting credit to businesses.
"We have done our analysis and assessment of our economy. We have a very robust capital market. We have a very liquid domestic market. That does not mean we should be reckless in borrowing from the domestic market, but we have a very liquid capital market," Mbadi said.
The Cabinet Secretary also dismissed the opposition's alternative budget proposals, arguing that they merely altered figures from the government's budget instead of presenting a credible alternative.
"They simply picked my figures, removed here and there, and added here and there. That is not really a budget. A budget is something you sit and think through, do simulations and come up with alternative views," he said.
