Uhuru no show

Finance minister Uhuru Kenyatta has failed to attend Parliament’s Budget Committee where he was expected to explain how his docket used Sh190 billion last year.

The crucial House team has accused the minister of repeatedly slighting Parliament by ignoring calls to appear before them.

The committee members dismissed Financial Secretary Mutua Kilaka from representing the minister at the hearing held at Parliament’s Continental House on Tuesday.

After listening to the tirade against his boss, Mr Kilaka humbly submitted: “We shall pass the message. We are obedient civil servants and we shall remain so forever more.”

The MPs said they had called the minister to address policy issues and not to be “merely informed” about how the monies allocated to the Consolidated Fund Services were used.

Mr Kenyatta had sent Mr Kilaka to brief the committee because, as a minister, he was attending to other “pressing national commitments”, which the committee understood to mean the on-going referendum campaigns.

The committee chairman Elias Mbau (Maragua, PNU), Mr John Mbadi (Gwassi, ODM), Mr Martin Ogindo (Rangwe, ODM), Ekwee Ethuro (Turkana Central, PNU) and Mr David Koech (Mosop, ODM) said the minister had “definitely slighted” Parliament by not according the committee summons the attention it deserves.

Ignore summons

Tuesday's meeting failed to take off as the MPs charged that it was the fourth straight time that the minister had ignored a summons to represent the Treasury at the committee.

“The minister has arrogated himself the role of chief campaigner of the Yes team, a position that does not exist anywhere in the republic,” said Mr Ethuro.

He said the minister was in breach of the National Assembly Powers and Privileges Act, which directs that parliamentary summons will take priority over any other duties, unless with the permission of the President.

Mr Ethuro asked Mr Mbau to order that Mr Kenyatta shows up with a letter from President Kibaki allowing him to skip the committee meeting in favour of the referendum campaigns.

“This is not a matter of having a tight schedule. It is a matter of an Executive that does not appreciate Parliament’s probing, one that does not want to follow the law, and one that abhors the Standing Orders,” added Mr Ethuro.

Dr Robert Monda (Nyaribari Chache, Narc) and Mr James Rege (Karachuonyo, ODM) questioned why the minister could not “balance his duties because even the scrutiny of the Budget was a national duty".

Mr Rege questioned why the assistant minister, Dr Oburu Oginga, had not appeared to hold brief for his boss, because under Parliamentary rules, he can do so.

“If what we are doing is simply a ritual for us to sit and talk with no ownership of the deliberations when we come to the floor of the House, then this meeting will not continue,” said Dr Monda.

Mr Ogindo added: “In the absence of a minister, then we are not meeting a Ministry. I will not want to be in a meeting whose decisions, the minister will just disown.”

"If he’s appointing an officer to appear before us, what will stop him from sending his personal assistant?” Mr Mbadi posed.

Mr Koech, the chair of the House committee on Education, also joined his colleagues in saying the minister had been “very difficult” to work with when it came to committee meetings and thus he had to be sanctioned.

With such an agreement, the MPs had no option but to adjourn the meeting until “further notice” when Mr Kenyatta is expected to appear in person or have his assistant minister show up.