KENYA Prisons bosses yesterday told MPs that the institution is going through a rough financial patch.
The cash flow challenges that batter the correctional services organisation stem from, according to their report to Parliament, soaring food prices.
As a result, they have run up multimillion-shilling pending bills because their allocations from the Treasury cannot keep up with the cost of living and the higher prices of the food they feed inmates.
But the prisons have large parcels of land at their disposal and to make matters even better, they have access to a large body of labour that can turn their large holdings into an endless source of food supplies all year round.
It is difficult to see why they buy maize, beans, rice, vegetables and even beef or mutton to feed prisoners. It is not a matter of skill because the Ministry of Agriculture can second competent officers to help prisons feed themselves.
The bosses have told MPs that the reason they are grappling with supplier invoices is because it now costs Sh275 to feed one prisoner yet their allocation from Treasury remains Sh172.
They have the capacity to produce surplus which would still fetch cash in the open market.
Prisons’ chiefs must roll up their sleeves and soil their hands instead of waiting for alms when they can solve the problem.
