Former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria is speaking out against “terrible” bureaucracy in the public service, which he believes is partly to blame for the government’s poor service delivery.
Kuria said this on Monday, reflecting on his time as CS for Public Service and Trade.
He is among the ministers. After dissolving the Cabinet last month, President William Ruto did not reappoint anyone.
“It is terrible! Terrible! The bureaucracy in government is terrible!” Kuria told Citizen TV’s Monday Report program.
“Sometimes you want to do the right things and wonder if those people care, in the Ministry of Trade and Investments, for example, you go to investors who have places to take their money and convince them, and they choose Kenya and you think you have bagged them, but when you come home…”
“Some spend months mark-timing, travelling to and from, and those are the investments supposed to create jobs. It makes me sad, really sad about this country.”
He claimed he had faced “sabotage” from junior public servants, who made it difficult for a CS to implement key programs and trade deals with foreign investors.
“It is like some people in government are trained on how to say ‘No’… sometimes you are sabotaged by accounting officers and directors who take their sweet time. They start with the answer ‘No’ and then draft the reasons,” Kuria said.
“I hope the new set of Cabinet is going to find an environment where people want to do the right things,” the former CS said.
“If you don’t change the way you are doing things, even this Cabinet will not succeed.”
Kuria, while declining to discuss why he believes President Ruto did not re-appoint him, stated that he intends to live a private life going forward.
“I really want to live a private life. I consider this to be my exit interview,” he said.
Kuria expressed pride in the work he had accomplished in less than two years as minister, adding that Kenyans would come to appreciate his performance over time.
“Turning the trajectory of a country takes a lot of time… I draw a lot of inspiration from the work I did as MP for Gatundu South,” he said.
“In the fullness of time, I know that I will be vindicated and for that reason, I know that my reward with the people of Kenya and most certainly with God is a deferred promise.”
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