This archive report was first published on 29 November 2019.
President Uhuru Kenyatta's nominee for Controller of Budget, Margaret Nyakango, declared her net worth at Sh68 million during her vetting by Parliament on November 28, 2019.
According to her declaration, Nyakango's net worth includes half the value of her family home, which she acquired through a mortgage. She stated that she and her husband, David Nyakango, had just finished repaying the loan and she had taken half of the house as part of her net worth.
Nyakango made the declaration before the National Assembly's Committee on National Planning, where she blamed the disregard for budgets for the mounting pending bills, which have crossed the Sh150 billion mark.
Her net worth pales in comparison to individuals recently vetted for top State jobs, with majority having assets in excess of Sh150 million. Former Cabinet minister Esther Murugi Mathenge said she was worth Sh320 million while seeking to join the National Land Commission (NLC), and lawyer Gershom Otachi quoted properties of Sh200 million while seeking the same job.
Nyakango emphasized the need for tighter budget controls, stating that the main task of the Controller of Budget is to approve release of cash from the government's main account — the Consolidated Fund Services — to ministries, counties, and State agencies.
She noted that the disregard for budgets has led to institutions incurring expenditure on the assumption that funds will come at a later stage, resulting in bills that cannot be settled.
