W
Wananchi Reporter
Guest
doctype html>
President William Ruto speaking at State House on Wednesday, August 27, 2025. PHOTO|COURTESY
When a government that came to power on the promise of frugality and fiscal discipline spends an average of Ksh.2 million every single day just on printing, itβs not just disappointing, itβs infuriating. The latest report by the Office of the Controller of Budget is a slap in the face of every hustler struggling to put food on the table while taxes crush their backs.
Letβs break it down: Ksh.817 million for printing services. Ksh.1 billion for advisors. Ksh.399 million for State House refurbishment, which has already consumed Ksh.1.17 billion and is still at only 66% completion. All this is happening while millions of Kenyans sleep hungry, while farmers cry over the cost of inputs, and boda boda riders are being crushed by high fuel prices.
What exactly are we printing with Ksh.817 million? Are we printing invitations on gold-plated cards? Are we printing notes on how Singapore became a developed nation while we were still in the cyber, the same Singapore the President says we will surpass in development? If thatβs the case, then someone needs to tell us when we graduate from printing to implementing.
The President once said, βWe will run a lean government.β Today, that government has over 20 advisors costing Kenyans Ksh.1 billion. These advisors were supposed to save us money by giving strategic guidance. Instead, theyβve become another budget line draining billions while the ordinary mwananchi is being asked to tighten their belt.
When government chooses to spend billions on luxuries, lavish printing, endless advisory services, refurbishing State House to become a five-star palace, what message does that send? That the cries of Gen Z and millions of Kenyans about high taxation, joblessness, and poverty fell on deaf ears.
Singapore did not develop by spending on printing and refurbishing presidential palaces. It developed by prioritizing the needs of the people, investing in infrastructure, healthcare, education, and technology. If we truly want to beat Singapore, then we must stop acting like a nation addicted to extravagance and start behaving like one that values every shilling. We can't just afford this level of extravagance.
Kenya cannot keep singing the song of βhustler empowermentβ while printing millions daily and paying billions to advisors who probably advise on how to spend more. We cannot keep telling Kenyans to be patient while we blow up their taxes on luxuries that add zero value to their lives.
This country needs urgent fiscal discipline. Every coin spent must translate into better roads, affordable healthcare, and jobs for the millions of unemployed youths. Until then, all this talk about βbottom-up transformationβ remains what it has always been,a nice campaign slogan that never moved from the podium to reality.
Mr. President, we are tired of printing poverty while promising prosperity. If we can afford Ksh.2 million a day for paper, we can surely afford food for a hungry Kenyan family. Prioritize the people. Thatβs all we ask.
By Sebastian Karani Asava
Β©Citizen Digital, Kenya
Continue reading...
- What exactly are we printing with Ksh.817 million? Are we printing invitations on gold-plated cards?
President William Ruto speaking at State House on Wednesday, August 27, 2025. PHOTO|COURTESY
When a government that came to power on the promise of frugality and fiscal discipline spends an average of Ksh.2 million every single day just on printing, itβs not just disappointing, itβs infuriating. The latest report by the Office of the Controller of Budget is a slap in the face of every hustler struggling to put food on the table while taxes crush their backs.
Letβs break it down: Ksh.817 million for printing services. Ksh.1 billion for advisors. Ksh.399 million for State House refurbishment, which has already consumed Ksh.1.17 billion and is still at only 66% completion. All this is happening while millions of Kenyans sleep hungry, while farmers cry over the cost of inputs, and boda boda riders are being crushed by high fuel prices.
What exactly are we printing with Ksh.817 million? Are we printing invitations on gold-plated cards? Are we printing notes on how Singapore became a developed nation while we were still in the cyber, the same Singapore the President says we will surpass in development? If thatβs the case, then someone needs to tell us when we graduate from printing to implementing.
The President once said, βWe will run a lean government.β Today, that government has over 20 advisors costing Kenyans Ksh.1 billion. These advisors were supposed to save us money by giving strategic guidance. Instead, theyβve become another budget line draining billions while the ordinary mwananchi is being asked to tighten their belt.
When government chooses to spend billions on luxuries, lavish printing, endless advisory services, refurbishing State House to become a five-star palace, what message does that send? That the cries of Gen Z and millions of Kenyans about high taxation, joblessness, and poverty fell on deaf ears.
Singapore did not develop by spending on printing and refurbishing presidential palaces. It developed by prioritizing the needs of the people, investing in infrastructure, healthcare, education, and technology. If we truly want to beat Singapore, then we must stop acting like a nation addicted to extravagance and start behaving like one that values every shilling. We can't just afford this level of extravagance.
Kenya cannot keep singing the song of βhustler empowermentβ while printing millions daily and paying billions to advisors who probably advise on how to spend more. We cannot keep telling Kenyans to be patient while we blow up their taxes on luxuries that add zero value to their lives.
This country needs urgent fiscal discipline. Every coin spent must translate into better roads, affordable healthcare, and jobs for the millions of unemployed youths. Until then, all this talk about βbottom-up transformationβ remains what it has always been,a nice campaign slogan that never moved from the podium to reality.
Mr. President, we are tired of printing poverty while promising prosperity. If we can afford Ksh.2 million a day for paper, we can surely afford food for a hungry Kenyan family. Prioritize the people. Thatβs all we ask.
By Sebastian Karani Asava
Β©Citizen Digital, Kenya
Continue reading...
