Stop looting public funds

The ongoing wanton waste of public funds is shocking, as the government has since the rejection of the Finance Bill, 2024 that denied it more anticipated revenue from taxes denounced as “punitive and oppressive”, effected major budget cuts.However, talk of austerity measures is not being matched by actions. During such difficult times, one would have expected the prioritisation of basic necessities. It is painful that at a time when public hospitals and health centres lack drugs and key facilities, funds are being splurged on things that could have waited until the economic situation improves.Members of Parliament are questioning the splashing of Sh337 million on the development of a National Dress and Kiswahili Day celebrations. In the past, some Sh50 million spent on the National Dress campaign yielded naught. What is even more annoying is that Sh10.51 million was splurged on paying the allowances of government officials.These things are important, but not a matter of life and death. It would have been more sensible to use that money to improve the well-being of suffering Kenyans. The MPs have rather bluntly described the spending through the State Department of Culture, the Arts and Heritage as meant to loot public resources.The Sports and Culture Committee of the National Assembly does not believe that it was necessary to spend Sh200 million to set up an exhibition in Paris during the Olympics Games. Its members were also not amused that Sh70 million was allocated for the National Dress. The Kiswahili Day gobbled up Sh55 million and Sh12 million sank into inaugural minorities’ rights celebrations from the Tourism Promotion Fund.There is nothing wrong with promoting tourism, which is one of the country’s major foreign exchange earners, competing with diaspora remittances, tea and horticultural exports. However, such spending must be prudent to realise value for public money. The embezzling of public funds through such programmes must be stopped.