NAIROBI, Kenya — Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura has rubbished claims that his office was allocated Ksh.36 billion in the 2025/26 national budget, calling the figure “a lie” and accusing civil society actors of deliberately misleading the public.
The remarks come in response to comments by Diana Gichengo, Executive Director at The Institute for Social Accountability (TISA), who questioned the government’s austerity narrative amid rising cost-of-living concerns.
Speaking on Spice FM earlier this week, Gichengo accused the government of “slicing and dicing” budget allocations to obscure the true extent of spending within the Executive.
“They claim the Office of the President’s budget dropped from about Ksh.100 billion to Ksh.5.5 billion, but here’s the trick: it’s been split into several sub-offices — the President, Deputy President, Spokesperson, and the State Corporation Advisory Committee,” she said.
She further alleged that the Government Spokesperson’s travel and subsistence budget had nearly doubled from Ksh.19.2 billion to Ksh.36 billion in the current financial estimates.
But Mwaura, in a rebuttal issued Wednesday, dismissed the figures as fictitious.
“The budget of my office is not even Ksh.100 million,” he said. “How do you go on radio and tell Kenyans that my office receives Ksh.36 billion? That’s not just misleading — it’s reckless.”
Mwaura suggested that Gichengo’s remarks were calculated to appeal to foreign donors.
“You’re posturing for dollars by being sensational,” he said. “I even sought a right of reply from Spice FM and they didn’t grant it.”
The government spokesperson also warned against what he termed “incitement disguised as activism,” saying the State would take a firm stance against misinformation, especially on social media.
“Let’s be careful not to incite Kenyans and create another Finance Bill moment. We will not allow our country to go down the drain,” Mwaura said.
He urged citizens to channel their concerns about the Finance Bill 2025 through formal mechanisms.
However, the window for public participation closed on May 27, after the National Assembly’s Departmental Committee on Finance and Planning concluded its hearings.
Despite this, Mwaura maintained that every view submitted before the deadline would be considered before the Bill is debated on the floor of the House.
The 2025/26 budget has stirred widespread public debate, with critics accusing the government of pushing cost-cutting rhetoric while expanding spending in certain quarters.
The Treasury is expected to table the full budget next week.
