Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - The Controller of Budget (CoB), Margaret Nyakang’o, has revealed that the government requested over Ksh523 million to fund ODM leader Raila Odinga’s unsuccessful bid for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship.
In her National Government Budget Implementation Review
Report for the Financial Year 2024/2025, Nyakang’o disclosed that the National
Treasury allocated Ksh523.8 million to the State Department for Foreign Affairs
in November 2024 for Raila’s campaign.
However, in February 2025, her office only approved Ksh216.2
million of the requisted amount.
Nyakang’o clarified that although Treasury had approved the
full Ksh523.8 million, only Ksh216.2 million was formally requested and
subsequently authorized for use.
Raila’s high-profile bid for the AUC top seat ended in
defeat to Djibouti’s Foreign Minister Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, despite Kenya’s
vigorous lobbying that involved President Ruto and over 100 MPs attending the
January 2025 summit in Addis Ababa.
In the aftermath, concerns were raised over the campaign’s
cost, with Juja MP, George Koimburi, controversially claiming Ksh13 billion had
been spent.
Raila dismissed the figure as exaggerated, saying the Government
only provided logistical support for his international travels.
“I don't know which world these guys live in… or whether
they even understand what a billion means,” Raila stated.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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