Nairobi, June 30 -- In a week when Kenya should be discussing how to finally lift its three-month lockdown that has grounded the economy and cut jobs, the Treasury and Parliament are locked in unnecessary shadow boxing.
Much to the chagrin of Parliament's Budget and Appropriations Committee (BAC), the Treasury wants to hive off Sh1.5 billion for the purchase of testing kits and chemical reagents from the Sh3 billion that MPs had ring-fenced for referral hospitals.
BAC has also rejected attempts to move Sh300 million from the hospitals' funds for purchase of face masks to vulnerable groups and a further Sh700 million to the Kenya Medical Training College, an isolation centre.
For the budget of testing kits and chemical reagents, the BAC's...