Ruto camp wants Uhuru to account for Sh10b used on BBI

Deputy President William Ruto addresses Wananchi of Kitui town during a political rally in Kitui County on March 29, 2022. [DPPS]

Deputy President William Ruto's Kenya Kwanza Alliance (KKA) on Friday demanded that President Uhuru Kenyatta accounts for the billions of shillings used to promote the impugned bid to amend the Constitution.

Ruto's alliance promised to mobilise MPs to compel the Auditor General to audit funds used to promote the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI). Speaking in Lamu, the alliance said that although the President could not be sued while in office, BBI promoters must be held accountable for an estimated Sh10 billion allegedly spent on the BBI process.

They said under section 37 of the Public Audit Act 2015, Parliament can ask the Auditor General to conduct a forensic audit to establish fraud on public funds. Amani National Congress (ANC) leader Musalia Mudavadi said the determination of prudence in the use of public funds was placed under the ambit of the Audit General.

“We are aware that the BBI taskforce spent approximately Sh10 billion of public money in hotels collecting public views on the now declared unconstitutional BBI Bill 2020,” said Mr Mudavadi who read the statement while flanked by the DP and other Kenya Kwanza leaders.

Ruto's side said the Supreme Court has decisively dealt with the unconstitutionality of the BBI circus. The team said public funds spent were not appropriated by the National Assembly.

“Further, we are aware that some accounting officers particularly violated the provisions of Section 66 (1) (a) of the Public Finance Management Act, 12 by using public funds to finance the hefty expenses associated with the popularisation of the BBB initiative,” their statement read.

They warned principal secretaries and accounting officers who used their offices to allegedly divert public funds to the BBI process that they will be held to account for the funds as per Article 73 (2) (d) of Chapter Six of the Constitution. But three years ago Ford Kenya party leader Moses Wetangula, who is now in Kenya Kwanza Alliance, supported the BBI process.

But yesterday, the song was different as Mudavadi read the statement: “Our members at the National Assembly are moving a motion compelling the Auditor General to undertake a forensic audit on all public funds spent in the illegal process from inception to date.”