By Grace Gilo
Speaking at the Uhuru Kenyatta Institute, the former government spokesperson, Kanze Dena, has stated that the office of the former president of Kenya has not been receiving the allowances due to his office.
Kanze, who is the director of communication in the office of the fourth president of Kenya, confirmed that the former President, Uhuru Kenyatta, received his gratuity in full and has been receiving his personal monthly allowances that are paid by the pension fund that is domiciled at treasury and also has a medical cover.
Regarding the office space, Kanze highlighted that the Statehouse had made it clear that the only office available and willing to maintain is the one in Nyari that was used by the late President Mwai Kibaki.
She stated that the retired President was not enjoying a fully furnished and maintained office space of his choice, as pointed by the current government spokesperson.
“It is in public knowledge that the statehouse has been very clear on the positon of the office in Nyari as the only office that the President should use based on the fact that the office has been bought by the government,” reiterated Kanze.
Kanze also addressed the issue of vehicles provided to the former President, mentioning that he was given 2 Toyota Land Cruisers, 1 Mercedes Benz, 1 Subaru Forester, and 1 Range Rover, contrary to the information provided by the Government spokesperson
“On the number of fuel cards given it is true that each of the vehicles has a fuel card. However, these cards have not been operational as they were blocked by statehouse in March 2023 to date,” stated the former government spokesperson.
Dena further explained that no facilitation had been accorded towards repairs and maintenance of all vehicles under the office of the former President.
Additionally, she expressed concern over the lack of communication regarding the non-renewal of contracts for two professional staff members, namely Administrator Mr. George Kariuki and Senior Director of Communication, Mrs. Kanze Dena Mararo.
Regarding the matter of the office, a formal letter was sent to State House requesting an evaluation of the office space that President Kenyatta had identified as suitable for his duties. However, State House did not provide a response to this request, and the only communication received was through a text message.
“With no response from State House and a lack of commitment to finalize on the issue of the office space, his Excellency identified a suitable office space and fully furnished it from his pocket,” Kanze pointed out.
In terms of budget allocation, for the year 2022/2023, the parliament allocated 655 million shillings to this office.
However, up to this date, the office has only confirmed the absorption of 28 million shillings, which has been used for local and domestic travel allowances, as well as the facilitation of two trips that have been undertaken so far.
Furthermore, Kanze mentioned that for the year 2023/2024, which is ending in a few weeks, the office was allocated 503 million shillings.
However, despite the financial year coming to a close, the office had not received this allocation.