NAIROBI, Kenya – Nearly 50 political parties have been put on the spot for failing to account for over Sh601.9 million received from the Political Parties Fund, a new audit has revealed.
The report by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu shows widespread gaps in financial reporting, weak governance practices, and a lack of transparency in the handling of public money during the 2023/2024 financial year.
According to the findings, Sh275.9 million remains tied to unsupported balances across 16 parties, while another Sh325.9 million was linked to cash management irregularities in 45 parties.
“The audit identified systemic issues including inaccuracies in financial reporting, lack of supporting documentation, weak internal controls, poor governance, and non-compliance with regulatory requirements. These raise concerns about value-for-money in the use of public funds,” the Auditor General warned.
KANU Tops the List
Among parties with the largest gaps, the Kenya African National Union (KANU) recorded unsupported balances of Sh212.7 million.
This included Sh37.3 million in trade payables and Sh175.4 million in loans that lacked proper documentation.
Narc-Kenya was flagged for Sh27.7 million in unsupported balances, while the Wiper Democratic Movement failed to justify Sh14 million due to unreconciled prior-year adjustments.
The Jubilee Party was also cited, with auditors raising questions over unexplained cash and cash equivalents amounting to Sh6.9 million.
Reporting Failures
The audit further noted that at least 10 political parties failed to comply with Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (PSASB) requirements.
Issues flagged include incomplete disclosures, incorrect comparative data, presentation errors, and missing strategic and performance reporting.
Unsupported balances were commonly attributed to undocumented member contributions, unverified cash holdings, unexplained borrowings, prior year adjustments, and missing fixed asset records.
Some of the parties flagged include the United Progressive Alliance, Kenya Social Congress, Maendeleo Democratic Party, Ubuntu People’s Forum, United Democratic Movement, Kenya National Congress, People’s Empowerment Party, Green Thinking Action Party, National Ordinary People Empowerment Union, and Safina Party.
