NAIROBI, Kenya — Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah has called for the immediate withdrawal of the Finance Bill 2026, alleging that the proposed 2026/27 national budget contains Sh101.37 billion in unexplained allocations under a broad expenditure category that lacks sufficient transparency and accountability.
In a statement issued on Monday, Omtatah said his review of the National Government Budget Estimates for the 2026/27 financial year revealed that Sh101.37 billion had been placed under the category of “Other Operating Expenses” without being linked to specific programmes, projects, votes, or measurable outcomes.
According to the senator, the amount comprises Sh74.97 billion in recurrent expenditure and Sh26.39 billion in development spending.
“Instead of being allocated to clearly defined programmes and activities, these funds have been grouped under the vague and undefined ‘Other Operating Expenses’ category,” Omtatah said.
He argued that the practice has persisted over several financial years, noting that the 2025/26 budget contained Sh116.26 billion under the same category, while projections indicate allocations of Sh98.37 billion in 2027/28 and Sh100.85 billion in 2028/29.
Omtatah questioned how unidentified expenditure items could be accurately costed during the budget-making process.
“Budget formulation involves the costing of specific programmes or items within a cost centre. It is therefore conceptually impossible to establish the cost of unidentified programmes or items described as ‘Other Operating Expenses’,” he said.
The senator cited several institutions with substantial allocations under the category, including the State House, which he said has Sh3.51 billion in “Other Operating Expenses” compared to Sh7.37 billion in classified operating costs.
He also pointed to the State Department for Internal Security and National Administration headquarters, which has Sh10.35 billion under the category against classified operating expenses of Sh4.7 billion, and the National Treasury, which has Sh13.01 billion compared to Sh7.17 billion in classified expenditure.
Omtatah argued that the allocations violate Article 221 of the Constitution, the Public Finance Management Act, 2012, and the Public Finance Management Regulations, 2015, which require public expenditure to be tied to specific votes, programmes, and purposes.
He warned that such allocations weaken parliamentary oversight and create opportunities for misuse of public funds.
“Public funds cannot lawfully be appropriated without clearly identifying the vote, programme, purpose, and expected outcomes for which they are intended,” he said.
The senator also linked the disputed allocation to the recently approved Finance Bill 2026, noting that the tax measures in the Bill are expected to generate approximately Sh98.5 billion in additional revenue.
“Strikingly, this Sh98.5 billion is less than the Sh101.37 billion currently allocated to the opaque ‘Other Operating Expenses’ in the FY 2026/2027 estimates,” he said.
Omtatah argued that removing questionable allocations could eliminate the need for additional taxation and create room for development spending and tax relief.
He urged Parliament, sitting as the Committee of Supply during consideration of the budget estimates, to reject the current budget and undertake a comprehensive review of all unclear allocations.
“It must not approve the FY 2026/2027 Budget Estimates in their current form, nor should it allow the Finance Bill it approved to stand while such massive inefficiencies remain unaddressed,” he said.
