Daily costs for prisoners, combined with shrinking funds, have led the State Department for Correctional Services into a deep financial hole, with unpaid bills now at Sh3 billion.

Principal Secretary Salome Muhia told lawmakers that despite needing Sh275 daily per inmate, only Sh192 is provided, making it hard to meet basic obligations.

Muhia appeared before the Public Accounts Committee in response to audit concerns raised in the Auditor General’s report for the 2022-23 financial year.

The report showed the department had Sh6.8 billion in pending bills, a situation Muhia said has partly improved.

She explained that frequent changes to the ministry’s budget after parliamentary approval make it difficult to meet supplier obligations.

"The problem has been that our budget is approved by Parliament, it is usually revised in the supplementary estimates meaning we are unable to meet our obligations," Muhia said.

Commissioner General of Prisons Patrick Mwiti was present during the session.

The PS explained that some of the unpaid bills date back to 2015, with little progress made in clearing them due to unstable funding.

To stop the trend, Muhia proposed that her department’s funds be protected from budget cuts. She said this would help maintain stability and improve the department’s ability to pay suppliers on time.

She noted the ministry’s development budget, which was above Sh1 billion, had been slashed to just Sh40 million, further disrupting operations.

Lawmakers were concerned about the lack of progress. Butere MP and committee chair Tindi Mwale pressed for answers on why the bills have not been cleared over the years.

 "We need [the pending bills verification committee] to come here and give us the total cost of pending bills and timelines for payment," Mathioya MP Edwin Mugo said.

Lugari MP Nabii Nabwera also questioned whether the department had made enough effort to secure increased funding.

"For the past two years that I have been in this committee, I have noticed that some departments which have heavy expenditure do not incur such heavy pending bills," he remarked.

Mwale agreed with the call to summon the verification committee.

"We will invite the committee to appear before us so that they can give us a way forward," he said.

The department now awaits the committee’s review as the pressure to pay the Sh3 billion in outstanding bills continues to mount.