Audit Kenya's national treasury records on maternity funds

Kenyan mothers are yet to fully benefit from free maternity services that the Jubilee administration pledged.

In any case, free maternity services exists only on paper because a majority of expectant mothers have been paying for delivery services in Government-run maternity hospitals. Others still opt for private facilities due to the obviously higher quality of services.

Corruption is never far away because despite the national government saying it had disbursed all but Sh1.4 billion of the expected Sh7.2 billion to counties for free maternity services, governors are categorical that the national government is still holding onto Sh7.2 billion in arrears, thus effectively crippling free maternity services.

It is hard to establish who between the national government and the county governments is being economical with the truth, but it is evident no free maternity services are available. There is also the possibility that books at the National Treasury reflect remittances to the counties that have not actually been effected, except on the books.

This calls for serious investigations, especially given the possibility of the existence of cartels in high offices that have systematically been fleecing Kenyans and denying them basic services.