TH MAY, 2014 Let me begin by giving my sympathy to those who have been injured (in todays Gikombaa explosion) and once again to continue, to urge Kenyans as we have done in the past, that all o us must be on our alert, as we continue to endeavor to battle with these criminals who continue to use terror to intimidate and to put ear into Kenyans! "e, as a Government, will continue to use everything in our power to ensure and to saeguard the saety o all Kenyans! #nce again, $ urge all Kenyans to be vigilant and to report any suspicious movement that they may detect! %his is our battle and we must work together to win it! Ladies and gentlemen, %he &onstitution reminds us that the authority assigned to a public o'cer is a public trust! (ublic authority is not a personal procession) it is actually a grant o power, regulated by law to serve the best interest o Kenyans! $t must always be exercised in conormity with the constitutional values that we chose or ourselves and these include among other things* e+uity, e'ciency, accountability and impartiality! $ndeed, we must do better when it comes to relations between the two levels o government! %he conusion and constant conrontation we see waste time and resources that are better spent elsewhere! ,esterday, $ directed the national administration to take up the unctions o the national government at the county level! &ounty commissioners, as key representatives o my o'ce, will coordinate all national government unctions at the county level! %he arrangement mirrors the management o the public service at the national level! $ want to be clear that this is not to say that in any way or orm that $ have ceded control at the centre! "hat we have done, is simply delegated the unctions in order to ensure more e'cient, reliable and better service delivery to all Kenyans wherever they may be! "e have a mandate to serve the public in a way that respects the resources that are available to us! %he move $ took yesterday is about -lling the service delivery gap! "hat we have done actually is in act no di.erent rom what the county/level o governments have been doing! ,ou are all aware that governors have elt that they need to have county administrators in their areas to deliver the services which the &onstitution mandates the county governments to provide! &onse+uently, it will be hypocritical to claim that the national government does not need administrators to ensure that its unctions at the grassroots are also properly carried out! "e, in the national government, are not -ghting or control, we are not pre/occupied with control! 0either should others be! "hat, together, we should all be concerned about, is to ensure better and more e'cient service delivery to all Kenyans, in a manner outlined by the unctions that each level o government has been given by our &onstitution! Let me take this opportunity, especially in light o what has just happened, to rebut the unortunate report that has recently appeared in the news! $t is argued in some dailies, that the 1nti/ %errorist (olice 2nit had received a budget o only 34 million shillings in this years budget! %his is indeed a deep misunderstanding o the nature o security unding in our country! 5irst, the 34 million shillings covers the o'ce operations o the unit! 6econd, the overall security budget provides or e+uipment and inormation that are shared across all the services o the police! 5or example, the Kenya (olice 1ir "ing and other such services are available across the board to all units who re+uire such services! %he report badly misidenti-es the resources available to the 1%(2 and indeed $ believe that the mistake could have been avoided by simply consulting the relevant authorities or better explanation!
$ thank you very much, $ didnt intend to make a long statement and now am ready to take your +uestions which $ think is what you are more interested in! Quest!"# "ith the repetitive attacks that we have been seeing and the most recent ones just a moment ago today, do you think the travel agencies that have started evacuating tourists have a justi-cation to do that now7 6econdly, yesterday you gave a directive or the national treasury to pay o. the 8!9 billion shillings, now that the payments are going to be made or have been made, can you realistically tell us when you think the :uro bond will be issued7 P$es%e"t# %hank you; #n the -rst issue let me state that terrorism is not an evil that was born in Kenya! %errorism is a worldwide phenomenon! <any countries are aced with this particular problem! "e have seen the goings on in 0igeria, in 1ghanistan, in $ndia and in (akistan! "e have seen terrorist attacks in London, in 0ew ,ork and in =oston! 6o, thereore, terrorism is not an issue that is peculiar to Kenyans! %his is an evil that all o us around the world must be united to ensure that we are able to -ght it and remove it rom our midst as we move orward! $ am aware o what the =ritish Government chose to do yesterday! 1nd it is not or me to comment about what they did! =ut all $ can say is that we in Kenya are committed to this -ght! "e will do all we can as a Government! $ continue to urge my ellow citi>ens to join us in this particular battle and to ensure that we root it out rom our midst! $ continue to call on all riends o Kenya to work together with us to -ght and to combat this evil! $ndeed, it is my strong belie //to say the very least //that acts like were done yesterday by the people that you just mentioned, only strengthen the will o terrorists as opposed to helping us to deeat that war! =ut all said and done, we as a country must move on! "e must do what we can, we shall endeavour to do what we can! "e will continue to market our country to other destinations and continue to call on our own citi>ens to be supportive o our hospitality industry which is amongst the best in the world! "e dont need to travel out to have a holiday! "e can enjoy our own products like others who desire to do so in other parts o the world! ,es they have said what they have said, but Kenya will and must move on! "ith regards to the second +uestion indeed, it is or precisely or the reasons that you have mentioned that $ elt it necessary to take that decision! 1s most o you are aware, the :uro bond was part o our budget or this -nancial year! %hereore, the decision to pay (8!9 billion shillings) was a clear choice given the act that we had already lost the cases and orders had been issued against the Government! %here was no way we could go or this particular bond without -rst having cleared our international obligations! 6o $ gave that directive! Kenyans will continue to debate on this issue, it doesnt mean because we have paid the issue is over! (art o my statement yesterday made it very clear that we have issued an order to start once again with resh investigations in this particular matter! "e will not stop! $ have also re+uested (arliament to continue to conduct investigations in this particular matter! 1nd in the event that we are able to get hold o those individuals who were involved, we will do everything in our power to ensure that these monies are repaid by the culprits! =ut as o now, with less than two months to go beore the end o the -nancial year, the choice was either to start cutting back on Government expenditure, to start cutting back on programs and service delivery to Kenyans or to pay in order or us to be able to move orward as a country! 1s the country moves orward, this issue remains an open and an issue which $ call upon on all concerned parties //especially the 1nti/&orruption commission //to do everything they can to ensure that this portion o money is recovered and Kenya gets restitution!
Quest!"# <r! (resident, $ take you back to 3??@! ,ou described it (1nglo Leasing) as a scam and could not stand by and watch Kenyans being Aeeced! =ut eight years later or so, there seem to be a change o mind! Bo you still believe in what you said then and what has occasioned the change o mind7 $s it because o the :uro bond that you have decided to go against the principles you stood by then7
P$es%e"t# $ want us to be very clear! $ stand by what $ said then! %here is no doubt in my mind about that! $ am very clear on that particular issue! =ut as $ have said, despite that particular stand, there is a ruling in an international court that demands that Kenya must pay! "e lost the case, we did not win it! %he act that we didnt win doesnt mean that $ have changed my position! $ maintain my position! =ut as the (resident o the Cepublic o Kenya, $ have a responsibility or 9? million Kenyans! 1nd given that responsibility, we were going to issue this :uro bond, it was part o our budget, we are looking or that 8D3 billion shillings! 1nd it is unortunate that because o that ruling, this payment to 1nglo leasing was standing in the way o this country being able to move orward! 6o the choice was do $ stand by what $ said and not pay, and in that case now as (resident o Kenya, not as the leader o the opposition, make Kenyans go through and endure a loss o service delivery, programs being stopped, that were supposed to bene-t Kenyans because o that 8!9 billion! $ think or me the choice was then very easy //that my principle stands and thats why $ say that we will continue to ollow up on this matter even though we have paid in line with the act that we have a ruling against us! 6o we have shown the world that we indeed respect the rule o law! "e will continue to ollow up and see how we can get restitution! =ut at the same time our country is able to move orward without development programs and with service delivery because we cannot stop Kenya moving orward because o this particular issue! %hat doesnt change, in any way, my personal position at all! Quest!"# Eust wondering, <r! (resident, what would Kenyans think o the other contracts that maybe demanding payment because paying this will open up demands rom wheeler dealer companies that are demanding their cut! "hat will happen to those contracts! P$es%e"t# $ think or me, and $ continue to insist, thats why $ am saying this matter must continue to be ollowed up! 1nd the pressure, especially on the 6tate Law #'ces, is that they must up their game because we cannot a.ord to lose any more cases! $ believe we have su'cient evidence as to why this must not be paid! =ut it is unortunate that we had these rulings and this was even beore $ came to o'ce! 6o we must, as Kenyans! $ am putting pressure on the 6tate law #'ce, $ am asking (arliament to continue to put pressure to ensure that we up our game and we should not leave these cases because $ believe there is clear evidence o misdeed in those transactions! 6o we must, thats the only way we can do it! "e have to go to court and we must win! $t is or the legal council that represents our republic to up their game and to ensure that we dont lose any more cases going orward because as we lose them they cost us on issues that we do not believe are correct! Quest!"# <r! (resident, $ will take you back to the travel advisories issues! 1re you aware o any intelligence that could perhaps justiy the 2K doing the evacuations and the 26 making statements that it has and have they shared it with you or is it just Kenya being kept out o the loop7 P$es%e"t# "ell, $ have indeed asked our intelligence people that particular +uestion you have asked me! $s there something that they know that we are not aware o7 %hey have come back to me and told me that they have consulted with their counterparts and they have been told that there is nothing more than we are aware o! 6o, indeed, i they have something more than they have already shared with us and warrants what they have done then indeed they have not shared it with our o'cers! Quest!"# <r! (resident, you said that (arliament will do resh investigations, when you were the &hairman o (1& you had done these investigations! 1re you putting a credibility +uestion on the kind o investigations that you did7 %wo, you had said that, according to the Fansard, paying this amount will be tantamount to Aeecing the taxpayers, arent we doing that now7 P$es%e"t# $ repeat, that is the position and as ar as am concerned that position still stands! %he act o the matter is that that was a (arliamentary report! $ was not the council representing this nation in the court in London and in Geneva at the arbitration! "e didnt lose our battle in the 0ational 1ssembly, we lost our battle in the courts out there! %hat is where the ruling was made that we must pay! $ was not the one who was representing the country! %hat is why $ am saying we must up our game so that our council can stand up by what all Kenyans believe including me that we should not be paying this! "e need to be able to win those battles in the courtroom because, unortunately, out there in the international community they are not interested in what $ said in (arliament! %hey are interested in the ruling o the court and whether Kenya has obeyed the ruling o the court or not! %hat is what they are interested in, they are not interested in our debate here! %hey are not interested in what the (resident said! %hey say i you had a case you should have won it out there! 1nd $ agree that is where we should have won it! %hat is why we must continue to strengthen our game to win in the court o law! =ut now we are aced with the challenge that mysel and the majority o Kenyans believe we should not be paying! %he courts have ruled that we must pay! "e have gone to the highest level including appealing it and we have been told again we must pay! 6o the choices we have are* /%o disrespect the international law because we, ourselves, believe that we shouldnt pay! =ut doing that, we will su.er the conse+uences that have just explaining) or /"e pay and then we are let, as Kenyans, to continue chasing or that money through other means! Bo we respect the rule o law or we dont respect the rule o law7 %hat is the simple issue, its not about what $ said! %he decision to pay is not against my report! $t is against the act that we went to court and lost! 1nd i you lose in court then you must abide //as a law abiding nation //by how the court rules! %hat is the unortunate situation that we all -nd ourselves in! Quest!"# <r! (resident, $ just wanted you to share with us, all Kenyans needed to know whether your Government is committed to giving the names o people who were in the 1nglo leasing scandal at the end o this investigation that you are saying is now underway! P$es%e"t# 1ll $ can say is that we have told all the appropriate agencies to open up resh investigations! <y only guarantee to Kenyans clearly is that whatever comes out o those investigations will be made public! $ cant say $ am going to name so and so! %he ones $ named are in my report but its the agencies that are supposed to investigate and prosecute!
PRESIDENTIAL PROCLAMATION - With respect to - THE DEATH OF H.E. DANIEL TOROITICH ARAP MOI, C.G.H. - Second President of the Republic of Kenya - solemnly issued at State House, Nairobi on the 4th day of February, 2020.
Statement by His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta During The Generation Unlimited High-Level Virtual Event, Connecting Half The World To Opportunities. Date: Tuesday 1ST September, 2020.