The Chairperson of the Presidential Council for Economic Advisors, David Ndii, has dismissed allegations that the government spent Ksh104 billion to acquire the system that manages the Social Health Authority (SHA).
Taking to his X account, Ndii defended President William Ruto’s administration, stating that despite outsourcing the current health system, no money had been spent on it.
He maintained that the Ksh104 billion was user fees charged by the owners of the system and is payable over the next ten years, which is the contract period.
"The UHC digital platform is fully outsourced. The Government of Kenya has not spent one Ksh on it. Ksh104 billion is user fees payable over a 10-year contract period," Ndii clarified.
According to Ndii, for instance, Kenyans channelled Ksh77 billion last year to pay user fees to one of the leading mobile service providers in the country.
He added that the new SHA system would provide similar capability but for Ksh10 billion per year, which is equivalent to Ksh50 per hospital visit per individual.
The government advisor was forced to clarify the matter after a section of Kenyans took to social media to express their disappointment over the government’s decision to pump billions into a new health system, which they claimed did not work.
Ndii’s clarification also followed a report by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu who alleged that despite massive investment into the new health system that manages SHA, the government neither owned nor controlled the system.
In her report, Gathungu revealed that despite the multi-billion expenditure on the system, the government did not hold any intellectual property rights, thus limiting its authority over the system.
As per the report, the procurement of the system did not undergo a competitive bidding process as required by the constitution, with the Auditor General claiming that the contractor was sourced directly.
"This process was contrary to Article 227(1), which requires a fair, equitable, transparent, competitive, and cost-effective way of acquiring goods and services," Gathungu stated.
Gathungu further alleged that disputes arising from the contract between the government and the system owners would be resolved by the London Court of International Arbitration rather than local courts. by
