This archive report was first published on 6 August 2020.
On August 8, 2020, Dennis Itumbi, the former Director of Innovation, Digital and Diaspora Communication in the Office of the President, made a shocking claim: he worked without pay for a year at State House.
Itumbi was part of the Presidential Strategic Communications Unit (PSCU), a team that was re-organised in March 2020. He claimed that former State House Spokesperson Manoah Esipisu, now Kenya's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, was instrumental in the woes that Itumbi faced before his unceremonious exit.
Itumbi alleged that Esipisu opposed changes he proposed to transform the team, which included the transition from the Presidential Press Service (PPS) to the PSCU. He claimed that Esipisu's approval was required for the PSCU to be formed and new hires made.
However, Itumbi decided to bypass Esipisu and approached President Uhuru Kenyatta directly to sign off on the project, which he did.
"They (Manoah) saw it as Breaking News on their phones as they took their stroll in the gardens. For a whole year, avoiding the details, we worked without a salary and accessed State House only on the strength of a News Release," Itumbi wrote.
Itumbi's stint at PSCU was marked by a combative defense of the President and government projects online. His position, as well as several others within the PSCU, was scrapped as part of the re-structuring.
