The Ministry of Defense (MoD) is on the spot for incurring an expenditure amounting to Sh1.4 billion that had not been budgeted for.
Members of the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee were told that the Ministry signed contracts for amounts above funds received for various projects, resulting in an unbudgeted expenditure of Sh1,429,858,357.
Defense Principal Secretary Patrick Mariru, who had appeared before the John Mbadi-led committee, was put to task to explain why the Ministry engaged in the implementation of costly projects that had not been budgeted for.
The Auditor General’s report tabled before the Committee for the year ended June 30, 2022, indicated that the Ministry incurred unbudgeted costs of Sh424,928,279 for construction of a Level Five hospital for the State Department for Correctional Services.
The contract cost of the project was Sh824,928,279 but the ministry only received Sh400 million, the report reads in part.
The report further added that the Ministry incurred Sh599,628,135.00 on setting up another Level Five hospital for National Police Service.
The Committee was informed that the Ministry also incurred a total of Sh405,301,943 for rehabilitating Uhuru and Central Park projects on behalf of the defunct Nairobi Metropolitan.
The Committee noted that it was wrong for the ministry to agree to go on with the construction of the projects without a budget.
"You are aware that it is illegal to engage in any project or development deals without a budget. Why did the Ministry violate such simple financial regulation?" Mbadi posed.
In his response the PS told the Committee that the Ministries that they did the work for failed to remit the contractual amounts in full, leading to overstretching the budget.
"The Ministries that owe us have requested for additional money from the National Treasury to pay," he added.
The PS told the Committee that the process of handing over the three projects to mother Ministries has commenced.
