The Government Chief Whip Hamson Obua says that parliament will have to reconsider the appropriation bill at the beginning of the financial year to avoid delays by the Ministry of Finance to release the money to Government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies for the first quarter of the financial year 2024-2025.
This is after President Museveni declined to sign this bill and returned it to parliament just a few days before the close of the financial year which ends on 30th June. Obua said that the leadership of parliament decided to convene parliament at the earliest opportunity.
The house will convene next Tuesday to reconsider the concerns by the President that the funds were not appropriately allocated to the Government entities.
"But this can be handled within one or two days so that it is returned to the President for assent. Obua has also dismissed allegations that the return of the bill by the President to parliament for consideration, was to avert the situation in Kenya, where citizens stormed parliament protesting the proposed taxes.
"Ours is budget related, ours is a bill because, at the end of the day, the budget proposal goes through the bill and has to have been assented to give powers and mandate to the Minister of finance to release the money, said Obua ".
What is happening in Kenya is consideration of tax-related bills, which we have already handled and passed, Obua emphasized.
When he was asked whether the NRM party had plans to help its members who have been jailed on allegations of corruption, he said the caucus has no such plans to meet and discuss the plight of its members because NRM has a good track record of dealing with members implicated in corruption.
