As a husband and father of two lovely daughters, I am all for girl power. I am also one of the ardent supporters of affirmative action – translated loosely as "positive discrimination" – toward addressing the inequalities between men and women.
But affirmative action has to be guided by our laws, not our minds.
The recent revelation that Kenyan taxpayers are expected to finance the offices of the spouses of current governors, the Prime Cabinet Secretary, the Deputy President and the President has elicited mixed reactions from the public.
While some argue that it is necessary to provide such offices with resources to assist the spouses of elected officials in carrying out their public duties, others see it as a blatant waste of public resources.
I submit that financing them is an unnecessary expense that we should not even be entertaining.
The spouses' role, therefore, remains social and ceremonial, and they have no business directly implementing government activities using taxpayers' money.
The Constitution of Kenya is silent about the roles and functions of the spouses of elected officials. Neither does the position have an official mandate to run a government office or manage public funds.
Their husbands/wives are officials elected or appointed based on their qualifications and merits therefore, they should not be given any special privileges or access to public resources.
Financing offices of spouses of governors and the President undermines the principles of good governance and transparency and engenders a culture of nepotism and favouritism.
Additionally, the cost of maintaining these offices is exorbitant, and the funds could be put to better use elsewhere. For example, Kenya is currently grappling with many challenges, including climate change, poverty, unemployment and poor healthcare infrastructure.
Rather than financing unnecessary offices for the spouses of elected officials, the government should focus on improving its citizens' welfare. It is unacceptable for taxpayers' money to be used for non-essential services when more pressing needs require funding.
Financing offices of spouses of governors and the President with public resources breeds corruption and misuse of funds. The spouses of elected officials often have no official duties or responsibilities in government, making it difficult to monitor the use of the funds allocated to their offices.
There have been numerous cases where government officials have misappropriated funds allocated to their offices, and this trend is likely to continue if such unnecessary offices are maintained. The risk of corruption and embezzlement is higher in cases where there is no oversight or accountability mechanism in place.
The resources used to finance these offices can be better used to address the country's numerous challenges. Therefore, the government should prioritise more pressing needs and abolish this unnecessary expenditure.
They should follow the leadership of former First Lady Margaret Kenyatta and her famous initiative of the Beyond Zero campaign. She did a fantastic job through fundraising and partnering with companies and organisations, and she did not depend on taxpayers' money.
It is time for the government to prioritise its citizens' welfare over a few extravagant lifestyles. Should First Lady Mama Rachel Ruto and the spouses of the 47 governors want to engage in public service, they should either get on the ballot in 2027 or fundraise privately for their select interests.
One thing they should certainly do is stay away from our public coffers.
Lawyer and executive director at Muslims for Human Rights (Muhuri)
