Ruto Praises Ndii, Argues Govt Won't Borrow Loans To Pay Salaries
The Head of State affirmed that the government will not borrow loans to pay salaries
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President William Ruto on Tuesday, April 11 heaped praise on David Ndii, Chairperson of his Council of Economic Advisors, while addressing the ongoing salary crisis that has affected Members of Parliament (MP), among other civil servants.
Speaking during the release of the Report on Evaluation of the Performance of Ministries, State Corporations and Tertiary Institutions for the 2021/2022 Financial Year, the Head of State affirmed that the government will not borrow loans to pay salaries, a matter which has brought debate between the opposition and the government.
"I assure Kenyans on the commitment I made that we are not going to borrow money and spend on recurrent expenditures, especially salaries.
Inside a past Parliament session. /DAILY NATION
"I know we have an issue of delayed salaries, and it is the first time we are having this crisis. But it is also our first time having such monumental debts," he explained.
Ruto had assured Kenyans that a solution to reduce the debt was underway, even though he did not give a concrete solution as to how the government would manage the crisis.
His statement also deviated from explaining when the civil servants will be paid, or if, and the timelines in which the crisis would be averted.
Ruto hinted at turning his attention to taxes from Kenyans to reduce the amount borrowed from foreign countries.
"We will look for our taxes, I commend the taxman for the work they are doing during the difficult terrain. They were used to people not paying taxes," the president stated.
Ruto affirmed that he will not follow in his predecessor's footsteps to borrow money for recurrent expenditures emphasising that his administration will rely on the country's resources.
"My economic advisors led by David Ndii have done something phenomenal; they have managed to put together a programme that has taken us away from looking for $500M (Ksh68 billion) every month to buy our fuel needs, which was slowly into a crisis. Today we can buy fuel in Kenya shillings," he said.
Ndii was praised alongside Mohammed Hassan (Member of the Council of Economic Advisors), Davis Chirchir (Cabinet Secretary for Energy) and Joseph Oketch (head of the Electricity and Renewable Energy Directorate – EPRA).
He further noted that through his efforts, the government will no longer have to worry about the dollar shortage and that going forward, he is certain the demand for the dollar will decline and as result, the exchange rate will soon hit Ksh115.
It is worth it to note that Ndii, through an interview with Citizen TV's Waihiga Mwaura on Monday, April 10, expressed his frustrations on wastage in the government, alleging several failed attempts to contain the vice which he termed as deliberately done by various government bodies, with various independent agencies were unbothered about the situation as their actions were limited.
"Government is extremely wasteful, there is not a single day that I am not exasperated by not just how wasteful it is but by how deliberate it is and how unbothered people are.
"They are unable to reign in (referring to independent agencies). They are totally helpless. Every government is wasteful," Ndii explained, claiming that the Controller of Budget, Auditor General and various investigative agencies were powerless to stop the misuse of government resources.
Ndii however did not disclose the amount that was lost due to the deliberate actions of various government officers.
He further defended himself from claims that he was too honest, arguing that he was telling the truth and giving the reality of the economy.
From left: Economist David Ndii, MP Kimani Ichungwa (Kikuyu MP) and President William Ruto at a past event. /FILE
