CS Ndung’u appoints new members to pending bills verification committee

Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning, Njuguna Ndung’u has appointed two new members to the Pending Bills Verification Committee.

A Gazette notice dated November 2, indicates Geoffrey Malombe and Oliver Kipchumba Karori as the new Joint Secretaries of the committee.

"It is notified for the general information of the public that the Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning appoints Geoffrey Malombe and Oliver Kipchumba to be the Joint Secretaries of the Pending Bills Verification Committee, constituted via Gazette Notice No. 13355 of 2023 dated November 2, 2023," the notice reads.

The Cabinet in June of this year approved the establishment of a special committee on pending bills.

The Pending Bills Verification Committee is tasked with the auditing of liabilities for the period between 2005 and 2022.

In a meeting chaired by President William Ruto at State House, the Cabinet said that pending bills remain a sticky issue.

The National Government's pending bills from June 2005 to June 2022 stand at Sh481 billion while counties owe Sh159.9 billion.

The committee will consist of the Attorney General, the State Department of Roads, the State Department of Public Works, the State Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority.

Others include the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, the Law Society of Kenya, the Institute of Engineers of Kenya and the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya among others.

The Committee will examine and submit interim reports to the treasury cabinet secretary upon verification which the government will honour the obligation in question.

The move is aimed at establishing the integrity of all bills and cushioning small enterprises against liquidity inadequacies.