After scandal, Government now gives agency Sh20 billion

The government has doubled the project funding for the National Youth Service (NYS) to Sh20 billion.

This will be the largest allocation ever that the agency has received and it comes at a time that the government is still reeling from the damaging massive theft of Sh1.6 billion meant for NYS operations.

According to The Standard, details of the budgetary estimates indicate total funding for the troubled paramilitary training institute has risen three-fold under the Jubilee administration.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich expects the increased budgets will enhance the capacity of the paramilitary training institution and roll out more projects, including roads and water pans.

The CS in his last budget speech praised the NYS programme for creating "a lot of hope to our youth by preparing them for the job market and other income-generating activities".

Heightened political tensions

The theft of the Sh1.6 billion at the agency has heightened political tensions and divided the country as the government represented by the Jubilee Party and the opposition Cord coalition trade barbs on who was responsible for the scam.

On Tuesday, the NYS saga took a fresh twist when Jubilee MPs on Tuesday accused opposition party leader Raila Odinga and over 20 Cord legislators as being among the major beneficiaries of the multi-billion shillings scam.

However Cord leader Raila Odinga accused President Uhuru Kenyatta of shielding former Devolution Cabinet Secretary, Anne Waiguru, from the NYS scam.

Waiguru factor

Raila questioned questioned why the government was silent when it came to Waiguru while other top Devolution ministry officials were being charged with economic-related crimes.

The former devolution CS has maintained her innocence over the matter and shifted blame to other suspects over the loss of funds at the NYS including her former PS Peter Mangiti and former NYS Director General Nelson Githinji.

She has also distanced herself from NYS suspect Josephine Kabura saying they had never met despite her claiming that the two had been close friends.

Earlier this week, former National Youth Service Deputy Director-General Adan Harakhe and Devolution ministry tender committee chairman Hassan Noor were arrested by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) detectives and taken to court.

The two denied the fraud charges and the High Court granted the two a Sh1 million cash bail or a Sh3 million bond each.