This archive report was first published on 15 July 2019.
On July 15, 2019, the Foreign Affairs ministry's wasteful spending of taxpayer funds was brought to light, with reports indicating that Sh1.9 billion was spent on diplomats' house rent in just nine months.
According to the Controller of Budget report, the Foreign Affairs ministry accounted for 35% of the Sh5.3 billion spent on rent for offices and homes during this period.
The ministry's decision to spend such a large sum on rent was due to the fact that the houses it had bought for its staff in cities like London, Washington, and New York were in disrepair, having been neglected for years.
It is alleged that the ministry could have saved taxpayers' money by renovating the existing houses instead of buying new ones.
Furthermore, the ministry had requested Sh7 billion from the Treasury in March 2019 to purchase more houses for its foreign staff, which would have saved similar rental payments in the future.
However, the taxpayer in Kenya has seemingly resigned to the fact that public officials will always be wasteful, regardless of their work stations.
