Lobby group threatens to sue Government

Siaya, Monday June 19, 2023

KNA by Philip Onyango

The Operation Linda Ugatuzi lobby group will take the government to court for failure to release the bulk of the health care budget to the counties.

The lobby group leader, Prof. Fred Ogola has said it was ironical to have 65 percent of the health care budget retained at the national level, while the health functions have been devolved.

Addressing the media in Siaya town, prof. Ogola insisted: “The national government has put 35% of the health budget to the counties yet health care is 100% devolved. How can the national government retain 65% of the budget?”

He said that the lobby group wants 80% of the health care budget pushed to the counties to enable ordinary citizens’ access quality care.

Prof. Ogola said that should the government not heed to their call and the parliament passes the Finance bill in its current form, Operation Linda Ugatuzi will move to court to challenge the bill.

He said that the lobby group has identified 50 illegalities in the finance bill that are violating the constitution.

“Fifty sections of the constitution have been violated by the finance bill, among them a section that calls for prudent allocation of resources,” said Ogola, who cited the allocation of Sh350 billion projects that he alleged had been undertaken by the previous government.

He said that among such projects was the digitization of identity cards and Huduma cards that, he added, had already been undertaken.

Courtesy ; K. N. A