Fast Going Nowhere

I know that this is probably old news but considering the legendary fickleness of our collective memory, I thought a reminder might be useful (and,of course, it also gives me an excuse to put up a cartoon).

According to the budget estimates released prior to the reading of the budget in June, as quoted by Mars Group, there are currently 149 vehicles parked at State House, Nairobi. And presumably this figure represents a dire shortage of transportation considering that in this year’s budget they have been allocated Kshs. 73 million to buy more cars.

The estimates also reveal that the residents of State House supposedly use as much water as the entire Ministry of Education and have larger power bills than 26 other ministries.

While thousands of its citizens face hunger and some resort to eating for rats (in keeping with Robinson Githae’s advice a few years back), the Government of Kenya spends the equivalent of Kshs. 5.7 million a day on entertainment and is planning to pay a total of Kshs. 6.5 billion to 5 companies for a non-existent fertilizer factory, a yet-to-be-delivered navy ship with non-existent weapons and an unauthorised communications project which has resulted in the attachment of our Embassy at the Hague.

And even worse for a supposedly "developing" nation such as ours, only 15% percent of the Budget went towards the mythical development. 85% was simply the cost of government (Otherwise referred to as recurrent expenditure; y'know, all those Ministers, their assistants and Permanent Secretaries need to be kept in the manner they have become accustomed. )

And we still dream of reaching middle-income status by 2030?!