Public service delivery cabinet secretary Moses Kuria has revealed that the government will gazette retired President Uhuru Kenyatta’s home as office of the fourth President.
The government had earlier denounced the request, stating that it would be an incident of ‘a landlord also becoming the tenant’.
The decision, was arrived following a cabinet meeting that resolved to constitute a team of four led by head of public service Felix Koskei, that will look into the litany of grievances raised by the office of the former head of state.
“Some of the issues are not normal policy issues. For example is it normal for me to gazette my home as a government office? We know that is not the right thing to do but the President had to do it,” he said.
“The home of the retired president is now going to be a gazetted government office and that is not ordinary. In our understanding we had done everything according to the Act but the President, in his wisdom. said he didn’t want this issue to go out of hand so he asked us to bend backwards and look at what needs to be done.”
Kuria noted the team will also reconsider adding more security personnel to Kenyatta after he protested the 40 officers he currently enjoys.
“He (Ruto) said they delved into particular issues; they were able to breakdown issues to do with the police who are guarding the former president because the former president feels that the number is inadequate,” said Kuria during an appearance at Citizen TV.
According to Kuria, the Ruto administration will bend backwards to heed to Kenyatta’s demands noting that the matters raised needed major policy review thus could not be met by merely reading of the presidential benefits act
This , as members of Parliament have summoned State House representatives to explain why Former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s office has been operating without funding.
National Assembly Implementation Committee chairperson Raphael Wanjala says the committee notes with concern remarks by the Director of Communications to the Office of the fourth president Kanze Dena that indicated that retired President Uhuru Kenyatta has been funding his own official office.
Although the specific dates have not been given on when State House Comptroller Katoo Ole Metito is to appear before Parliament, MPs want the State House representatives to appear before them to ensure the allocated funds are made available for the retired President.