A TRANSCRIPT OF PRESIDENT KENYATTAS STATEMENT AT

STATE HOUSE NEWS CONFERENCE ON 16

TH
MAY, 2014
Let me begin by giving my sympathy to those who have been
injured (in todays Gikombaa explosion) and once again to
continue, to urge Kenyans as we have done in the past, that all o
us must be on our alert, as we continue to endeavor to battle with
these criminals who continue to use terror to intimidate and to
put ear into Kenyans! "e, as a Government, will continue to use
everything in our power to ensure and to saeguard the saety o
all Kenyans! #nce again, $ urge all Kenyans to be vigilant and to
report any suspicious movement that they may detect! %his is our
battle and we must work together to win it!
Ladies and gentlemen,
%he &onstitution reminds us that the authority assigned to a
public o'cer is a public trust! (ublic authority is not a personal
procession) it is actually a grant o power, regulated by law to
serve the best interest o Kenyans! $t must always be exercised in
conormity with the constitutional values that we chose or
ourselves and these include among other things* e+uity,
e'ciency, accountability and impartiality!
$ndeed, we must do better when it comes to relations between
the two levels o government! %he conusion and constant
conrontation we see waste time and resources that are better
spent elsewhere!
,esterday, $ directed the national administration to take up the
unctions o the national government at the county level! &ounty
commissioners, as key representatives o my o'ce, will
coordinate all national government unctions at the county level!
%he arrangement mirrors the management o the public service at
the national level! $ want to be clear that this is not to say that in
any way or orm that $ have ceded control at the centre! "hat we
have done, is simply delegated the unctions in order to ensure
more e'cient, reliable and better service delivery to all Kenyans
wherever they may be! "e have a mandate to serve the public in
a way that respects the resources that are available to us! %he
move $ took yesterday is about -lling the service delivery gap!
"hat we have done actually is in act no di.erent rom what the
county/level o governments have been doing! ,ou are all aware
that governors have elt that they need to have county
administrators in their areas to deliver the services which the
&onstitution mandates the county governments to provide!
&onse+uently, it will be hypocritical to claim that the national
government does not need administrators to ensure that its
unctions at the grassroots are also properly carried out! "e, in
the national government, are not -ghting or control, we are not
pre/occupied with control! 0either should others be! "hat,
together, we should all be concerned about, is to ensure better
and more e'cient service delivery to all Kenyans, in a manner
outlined by the unctions that each level o government has been
given by our &onstitution!
Let me take this opportunity, especially in light o what has just
happened, to rebut the unortunate report that has recently
appeared in the news! $t is argued in some dailies, that the 1nti/
%errorist (olice 2nit had received a budget o only 34 million
shillings in this years budget! %his is indeed a deep
misunderstanding o the nature o security unding in our country!
5irst, the 34 million shillings covers the o'ce operations o the
unit! 6econd, the overall security budget provides or e+uipment
and inormation that are shared across all the services o the
police! 5or example, the Kenya (olice 1ir "ing and other such
services are available across the board to all units who re+uire
such services! %he report badly misidenti-es the resources
available to the 1%(2 and indeed $ believe that the mistake could
have been avoided by simply consulting the relevant authorities
or better explanation!

$ thank you very much, $ didnt intend to make a long statement
and now am ready to take your +uestions which $ think is what
you are more interested in!
Quest!"#
"ith the repetitive attacks that we have been seeing and the
most recent ones just a moment ago today, do you think the
travel agencies that have started evacuating tourists have a
justi-cation to do that now7
6econdly, yesterday you gave a directive or the national treasury
to pay o. the 8!9 billion shillings, now that the payments are
going to be made or have been made, can you realistically tell us
when you think the :uro bond will be issued7
P$es%e"t#
%hank you; #n the -rst issue let me state that terrorism is not an
evil that was born in Kenya! %errorism is a worldwide
phenomenon! <any countries are aced with this particular
problem! "e have seen the goings on in 0igeria, in 1ghanistan,
in $ndia and in (akistan! "e have seen terrorist attacks in London,
in 0ew ,ork and in =oston! 6o, thereore, terrorism is not an issue
that is peculiar to Kenyans! %his is an evil that all o us around the
world must be united to ensure that we are able to -ght it and
remove it rom our midst as we move orward! $ am aware o what
the =ritish Government chose to do yesterday! 1nd it is not or me
to comment about what they did! =ut all $ can say is that we in
Kenya are committed to this -ght! "e will do all we can as a
Government!
$ continue to urge my ellow citi>ens to join us in this particular
battle and to ensure that we root it out rom our midst! $ continue
to call on all riends o Kenya to work together with us to -ght and
to combat this evil! $ndeed, it is my strong belie //to say the very
least //that acts like were done yesterday by the people that you
just mentioned, only strengthen the will o terrorists as opposed
to helping us to deeat that war! =ut all said and done, we as a
country must move on! "e must do what we can, we shall
endeavour to do what we can! "e will continue to market our
country to other destinations and continue to call on our own
citi>ens to be supportive o our hospitality industry which is
amongst the best in the world! "e dont need to travel out to
have a holiday! "e can enjoy our own products like others who
desire to do so in other parts o the world! ,es they have said
what they have said, but Kenya will and must move on!
"ith regards to the second +uestion indeed, it is or precisely or
the reasons that you have mentioned that $ elt it necessary to
take that decision! 1s most o you are aware, the :uro bond was
part o our budget or this -nancial year! %hereore, the decision
to pay (8!9 billion shillings) was a clear choice given the act that
we had already lost the cases and orders had been issued against
the Government! %here was no way we could go or this particular
bond without -rst having cleared our international obligations! 6o
$ gave that directive! Kenyans will continue to debate on this
issue, it doesnt mean because we have paid the issue is over!
(art o my statement yesterday made it very clear that we have
issued an order to start once again with resh investigations in
this particular matter! "e will not stop! $ have also re+uested
(arliament to continue to conduct investigations in this particular
matter! 1nd in the event that we are able to get hold o those
individuals who were involved, we will do everything in our power
to ensure that these monies are repaid by the culprits!
=ut as o now, with less than two months to go beore the end o
the -nancial year, the choice was either to start cutting back on
Government expenditure, to start cutting back on programs and
service delivery to Kenyans or to pay in order or us to be able to
move orward as a country! 1s the country moves orward, this
issue remains an open and an issue which $ call upon on all
concerned parties //especially the 1nti/&orruption commission //to
do everything they can to ensure that this portion o money is
recovered and Kenya gets restitution!

Quest!"#
<r! (resident, $ take you back to 3??@! ,ou described it (1nglo
Leasing) as a scam and could not stand by and watch Kenyans
being Aeeced! =ut eight years later or so, there seem to be a
change o mind! Bo you still believe in what you said then and
what has occasioned the change o mind7 $s it because o the
:uro bond that you have decided to go against the principles you
stood by then7

P$es%e"t#
$ want us to be very clear! $ stand by what $ said then! %here is no
doubt in my mind about that! $ am very clear on that particular
issue! =ut as $ have said, despite that particular stand, there is a
ruling in an international court that demands that Kenya must
pay! "e lost the case, we did not win it! %he act that we didnt
win doesnt mean that $ have changed my position! $ maintain my
position! =ut as the (resident o the Cepublic o Kenya, $ have a
responsibility or 9? million Kenyans! 1nd given that
responsibility, we were going to issue this :uro bond, it was part
o our budget, we are looking or that 8D3 billion shillings! 1nd it is
unortunate that because o that ruling, this payment to 1nglo
leasing was standing in the way o this country being able to
move orward! 6o the choice was do $ stand by what $ said and not
pay, and in that case now as (resident o Kenya, not as the leader
o the opposition, make Kenyans go through and endure a loss o
service delivery, programs being stopped, that were supposed to
bene-t Kenyans because o that 8!9 billion! $ think or me the
choice was then very easy //that my principle stands and thats
why $ say that we will continue to ollow up on this matter even
though we have paid in line with the act that we have a ruling
against us! 6o we have shown the world that we indeed respect
the rule o law! "e will continue to ollow up and see how we can
get restitution! =ut at the same time our country is able to move
orward without development programs and with service delivery
because we cannot stop Kenya moving orward because o this
particular issue! %hat doesnt change, in any way, my personal
position at all!
Quest!"#
Eust wondering, <r! (resident, what would Kenyans think o the
other contracts that maybe demanding payment because paying
this will open up demands rom wheeler dealer companies that
are demanding their cut! "hat will happen to those contracts!
P$es%e"t#
$ think or me, and $ continue to insist, thats why $ am saying this
matter must continue to be ollowed up! 1nd the pressure,
especially on the 6tate Law #'ces, is that they must up their
game because we cannot a.ord to lose any more cases! $ believe
we have su'cient evidence as to why this must not be paid! =ut
it is unortunate that we had these rulings and this was even
beore $ came to o'ce! 6o we must, as Kenyans! $ am putting
pressure on the 6tate law #'ce, $ am asking (arliament to
continue to put pressure to ensure that we up our game and we
should not leave these cases because $ believe there is clear
evidence o misdeed in those transactions! 6o we must, thats the
only way we can do it! "e have to go to court and we must win! $t
is or the legal council that represents our republic to up their
game and to ensure that we dont lose any more cases going
orward because as we lose them they cost us on issues that we
do not believe are correct!
Quest!"#
<r! (resident, $ will take you back to the travel advisories issues!
1re you aware o any intelligence that could perhaps justiy the
2K doing the evacuations and the 26 making statements that it
has and have they shared it with you or is it just Kenya being kept
out o the loop7
P$es%e"t#
"ell, $ have indeed asked our intelligence people that particular
+uestion you have asked me! $s there something that they know
that we are not aware o7 %hey have come back to me and told
me that they have consulted with their counterparts and they
have been told that there is nothing more than we are aware o!
6o, indeed, i they have something more than they have already
shared with us and warrants what they have done then indeed
they have not shared it with our o'cers!
Quest!"#
<r! (resident, you said that (arliament will do resh investigations,
when you were the &hairman o (1& you had done these
investigations! 1re you putting a credibility +uestion on the kind
o investigations that you did7 %wo, you had said that, according
to the Fansard, paying this amount will be tantamount to Aeecing
the taxpayers, arent we doing that now7
P$es%e"t#
$ repeat, that is the position and as ar as am concerned that
position still stands! %he act o the matter is that that was a
(arliamentary report! $ was not the council representing this
nation in the court in London and in Geneva at the arbitration! "e
didnt lose our battle in the 0ational 1ssembly, we lost our battle
in the courts out there! %hat is where the ruling was made that we
must pay! $ was not the one who was representing the country!
%hat is why $ am saying we must up our game so that our council
can stand up by what all Kenyans believe including me that we
should not be paying this! "e need to be able to win those battles
in the courtroom because, unortunately, out there in the
international community they are not interested in what $ said in
(arliament! %hey are interested in the ruling o the court and
whether Kenya has obeyed the ruling o the court or not! %hat is
what they are interested in, they are not interested in our debate
here! %hey are not interested in what the (resident said! %hey say
i you had a case you should have won it out there! 1nd $ agree
that is where we should have won it! %hat is why we must
continue to strengthen our game to win in the court o law! =ut
now we are aced with the challenge that mysel and the majority
o Kenyans believe we should not be paying! %he courts have
ruled that we must pay! "e have gone to the highest level
including appealing it and we have been told again we must pay!
6o the choices we have are*
/%o disrespect the international law because we,
ourselves, believe that we shouldnt pay! =ut doing that,
we will su.er the conse+uences that have just
explaining)
or
/"e pay and then we are let, as Kenyans, to continue
chasing or that money through other means!
Bo we respect the rule o law or we dont respect the rule o law7
%hat is the simple issue, its not about what $ said! %he decision to
pay is not against my report! $t is against the act that we went to
court and lost! 1nd i you lose in court then you must abide //as a
law abiding nation //by how the court rules! %hat is the
unortunate situation that we all -nd ourselves in!
Quest!"#
<r! (resident, $ just wanted you to share with us, all Kenyans
needed to know whether your Government is committed to giving
the names o people who were in the 1nglo leasing scandal at the
end o this investigation that you are saying is now underway!
P$es%e"t#
1ll $ can say is that we have told all the appropriate agencies to
open up resh investigations! <y only guarantee to Kenyans
clearly is that whatever comes out o those investigations will be
made public! $ cant say $ am going to name so and so! %he ones $
named are in my report but its the agencies that are supposed to
investigate and prosecute!