Turf wars affecting government services

PHOTO | SALATON NJAU Cabinet Secretaries Anne Waiguru and Fred Matiang’i (centre) with the director general of Vision 2030, Mr Mugo Kibati during the launch of the National Broadband Strategy in Nairobi on July 23, 2013. Ministries with more than one principal secretary are yet to appoint accounting officers, delaying payments for goods and services.   NATION MEDIA GROUP

By ISAAC ONGIRI iongiri@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted  Tuesday, July 23  2013 at  23:30

Key government ministries have been unable to pay for basic supplies and services due to turf wars and delays in appointing accounting officers.

The accounting officers — usually Principal Secretaries — are the only officials authorised to approve expenditure and sign government cheques. Six ministries with more than one Principal Secretary each are among key State institutions that are yet to withdraw funds to run their operations because delayed the appointment of accounting officers due to turf wars sparked by the merging of various ministries.

When the Jubilee administration came to power after the March 4 election, it reduced the number of ministries from 40 under the Grand Coalition government to 18.

The delays have paralysed supplies and procurement in the affected ministries even as the National Treasury said it is waiting for the affected departments to put their houses in order before they can be allowed to withdraw their money.

The affected ministries are withholding suppliers’ cheques worth millions of shillings as they wait to resolve the wrangles over whose signature will authorise expenditure.

Contacted by the Nation on Tuesday, National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich said he expected to have accounting officers in the remaining ministries appointed before the end of the week.

“This matter has been complicated because of the government reorganisation of ministries and given that the Budget was read before the PSs were appointed. The appropriation was also put in one vote which at the moment is inseparable,” Mr Rotich said.

“We managed to deal with 13 ministries last Friday whose accounting officers I formally appointed and I am hopeful that this week the other ministries would have organised themselves to enable us to appoint the accounting officers because there can only be one.”

He said the problem would be resolved with in next year’s Budget when each department assigned to a Principal Secretary will be allocated separate votes.

Previously the role of appointing accounting officers was a reserve of the Permanent Secretary for Finance, but the new Public Finance Management Act, 2012, gave the responsibility to Cabinet Secretaries.

Earlier, there was a dispute on whether Cabinet Secretaries should be allowed to assume the role of accounting officers given that under the current dispensation they are not politicians but technocrats a move that generated heated debate within government. The disagreements, were however resolved when Principal Secretaries were allowed to be the holders of the Authority to Incur Expenditure (AIE) which allowed the National Treasury to appoint accounting offices in 13 ministries last Friday. All the 13 ministries have one Principal Secretary each.

Among the ministries that are yet to appoint the accounting officers are the Ministry of Devolution and Planning which has two PSs; Interior and Coordination of National Government; Education, Science and Technology; East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism; and Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries all of which have three PSs each.

The National Treasury Principal Secretary Kamau Thugge on Tuesday said his ministry had already received the green light to withdraw money allocated to it after Mr Rotich formally appointed him as the accounting officer last week.

He said that those PSs already authorised to spend have been directed to process a mandate card allowing them to access their ministry’s Central Bank accounts and sign government cheques.

“The responsibility of appointing the accounting officers is now with the Cabinet Secretary” Dr Thugge said.

Some government officials warned the delay was a major concern.

“Some of these Cabinet Secretaries want to take charge of the votes. They are taking advantage of the lack of clarity in the law regarding this matter. This is why we can’t move,” said an official at the Treasury.

At Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru’s ministry of Devolution, it has to be agreed on who between Devolution PS John Konchellah and Planning’s Peter Mangiti would be in charge of the cheque book.

At Education Science and Technology, Prof Jacob Kaimenyi has two Principal Secretaries, Belio Kipsang (Education) and Coletta Suda (Science and Technology). Only one of whom can be designated as the accounting officer. The same applies in the ministry of Agriculture where Cabinet Secretary Felix Kosgey has three PSs; Sicily Kariuki (Agriculture), Japheth Ntiba (Fisheries) and Khadija Kassachoon (Livestock).

Interior and Coordination of National Government Cabinet Secretary Joseph ole Lenku also has two PSs; Mutea Iringo (Interior) and Josepheta Mukobe (Coordination). Cabinet Secretary Phyllis Kandie also has two PSs, Ibrahim Mohamed (Commerce and Tourism), Mwanamaka Mabruk ( East African Affairs); as does Mr Michael Kamau’s Transport and Infrastructure docket which has Mr Nduva Muli (Transport) and Mr John Mosonik (Infrastructure).