It has emerged that the Ministry of Health paid salaries on behalf of county governments but it is yet to recover the same.
In a report tabled in Parliament by the Auditor-General Edward Ouko, the Ministry of Health paid salaries totalling to Sh19.2 billion for county workers.
The ministry, however, only managed to recover Sh14.8 billion during the 2013/2014 financial year.
Ouko has now asked the ministry to explain why the county governments are yet to settle the remaining Sh4.4 billion. Earlier, there were no records to show the same. The report also questioned why the ministry has used Sh1.74 billion to acquire different machinery for Computed Tomography (CT) scanners.
“The ministry has not explained why the amount has remained outstanding and why it has not been disclosed in these financial statements,” reads the report.
The government reportedly paid 20 per cent of the value of the contract to enable it to secure Sh.7 billion loan from China. The government went for the loan to enable it to purchase the scanners in the quest to provide better health care to all Kenyans.
Ouko, however, revealed that there are no documents to prove that the ministry acquired the scanners and how much it cost the ministry. He also said that his office cannot ascertain the purchase when there is no evidence.