The Treasury has rejected Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi's push to nearly triple his budget for the year starting July to Sh2.6 billion amid the quest to cut on extravagant spending in government.
After the Treasury allocated Sh930.9 million to the office for the 2025/26 fiscal year, the office replied with a push to have the budget raised to Sh2.6 billion but Treasury put brakes on the request saying that priority for any additional funding would be given to non-discretionary costs.
The Sh930.9 million allocation to the office is an increase from the current fiscal year budget of Sh790 million, though still lower than the Sh1.37 billion that it spent in the year to June 2024.
The Prime Cabinet Secretary office had sought the extra funding to effectively supervise government operations, in what would give it more influence across ministries and state departments that it supervises.
“The increase by Sh1,691.8 million in FY 2025/26 budget allocation will facilitate effective Coordination and Supervision of National Government Operations by the PCS,” Treasury notes in the budget policy statement (BPS), citing Mr Mudavadi’s request.
The prime cabinet secretary's office, in proposals to the Treasury's draft budget for the coming fiscal year and the medium term, also requested extra funding for the 2026/27 and 2027/28 fiscal years.
The Treasury, however, denied the office the extra funding sought citing public debt service pressures that are taking priority as well as payment of government workers.
“The baseline estimates in FY 2025/26 and medium-term budget reflect the existing ministerial spending levels in sector programs. Within recurrent expenditures, non-discretionary costs take precedence, including the payment of public debt and interest, as well as salaries and pensions," Treasury stated.
"Development expenditures have been allocated based on flagship projects outlined in Vision 2030, the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, and the MTP IV priorities.”
The denial of extra funding to Mr Mudavadi’s office stops its plan to extend its influence in government, where it has been supervising ministries and state departments.
Treasury’s action is also a step to affirm its authority to shun extravagance in government where billions of shillings have been splurged on travels, hospitality and purchase of high-end vehicles to ferry bureaucrats.
This is amid pressures to meet public debt service costs which hit Sh1.56 trillion in the year to June 2024.
The prime CS has been overseeing implementation of projects and programmes and coordinates national government legislative agenda across ministries and state departments.
The office, however, does not engage in specific development activities since its establishment, with its spending limited to paying staff salaries and other activities to facilitate its operations.
Between creation of the prime cabinet secretary office when President William Ruto rose to power in 2022 and September last year, the office has spent Sh2.15 billion and all its spending has been on recurrent activities.
In the year to June 2023, the office spent Sh650 million, which rose to Sh1.37 billion in the year to June 2024, and Sh136 million in the first quarter of the current fiscal year.
The office’s activities have mainly revolved around development and review of policies and generation of reports, in its mandate of coordination and supervision of government services.
In the previous fiscal year, for instance, the office spent Sh904 million on coordination and supervision services, and Sh463.5 million on government coordination and supervision, notes the controller of budget report for the year.
At least Sh382.5 million during the year was spent on payment of salaries and allowances to people working in the office.
During the current fiscal year, the office is budgeted to spend Sh790 million out of which Sh136 million was spent in the first quarter.
“An analysis of programme and sub-programme performance for the office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary reveals low budget absorption at 13 percent, which implies delayed budget implementation," the controller of budget noted in her latest report.
"We recommend that while certain areas within the coordination services are progressing, others may require enhanced budget implementation to effectively meet target outcomes."
The office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary was created to assist the President and the Deputy President in effectively coordinating and overseeing the formulation and implementation of national government policies, legislations, programmes and projects.
